Basilica of San Zeno, Verona
The San Zeno Church is one of the most important churches of Verona. It was built in the 12th and 13th centuries. While much of the church is dominated by the Romanesque, already show up in the ceiling Gothic forms. Are impressive, especially the Campanile ( bell tower ) and the large round window of the facade. On June 16, 1973, she was awarded the honorary title of minor basilica.
History
At the point where the present Basilica stands, was the first church in the 4th century. This church was built on the orders of King Pippin by the architect Pacifico in the 9th century again. When the Frankish king Charlemagne, later called the Great, the Lombard kingdom had prostrated, he put his son Pippin became the King of Italy and let him reside in Verona. With him were the papal Catholic Church especially committed monastic orders, who had little chance before taking the anti-papal Lombard, gain power and influence. At the gates of Verona the huge Benedictine Abbey of San Zeno, a fortified monastery town, favorite residence of the German kings during their Romzüge was the imperial coronation. This abbey transferred King Pepin and the Veronese Bishop Ratoldo in a document from the year 807, many dioceses, including the namesake church in Bardolino belonged
Towards the end of the 11th century the church was started to rebuild and after the earthquake of 1117 continued to him without hesitation continued. 1135, the church was finished in its present form essentially. A few years later, the decorative design of the facade with the rose window and the portal system, in 1178 the free-standing Campanile was completed. The defense tower ( Torre di San Zeno ) left dates from the 13th century. He is the only surviving remnant of the Benedictine Abbey, which was largely destroyed, especially by the vandalism of the French occupation forces. There is a well-preserved wall-covering fresco of a ruler enthroned, in which Emperor Frederick II is seen and which is supplemented by fragments of two contemporary frescoes on the side wall in him. These show the wheel of fortune and an imperial eagle.
Description
Facade
The facade dates from the second half of the 12th century and is one of the most important church façade of the Romanesque. San Zeno was built in two phases, followed the various principles. This can also be seen on some details of the facade.
The porch, the portal and the marble reliefs belong to the part in the first phase, which lasted until 1138. Then came a reorganization, which modified the existing, already completed elements and recomposed. Two masters at play here, the older and the younger Niccolo Guglielmo.
Only the entrance area offers a whole range of plastic art. As related issues here can be the porch itself, highlight the tympanum, the door panels and the side marble reliefs.
Tympanum
The tympanum shows in the middle of Zeno of Verona, to whom the church is dedicated, which is reflected the Hellkite and the mounted patricians right and the people left shows the standard of the city - an illustration in the period of the city-state has openly political character by the people as an image theme appears at all. The sheltered location of this tympanum under the canopy aims to preserve the color guaranteed.
Base zone
Even the arched band of the canopy is decorated with reliefs, here with representations month, and even the shaded lower surface, showing a dragon. Such representations beast at church entrances have apotropaic meaning, that had the function to keep away evil spirits from the church interior.
Serve the same purpose, the two lions which support the pillars of the canopy, symbolizing the right and the faith and are used here for centuries from the kids around as toys, which explains their very different wear.
Stone slabs
The stone panels on the left show scenes from the life of Jesus the Master Wilhelm from the mid-12th century, right the slightly older creation story of Niccolò of 1135th
First you have to know that these panels have not been installed on both sides in the original order, but were later transferred. This meant that treat on both sides of the respective lowest two plates completely different topics. Here, then, the creation story begins on the second floor from below with the " Creation of the Animals " and next to the " Creation of Adam ". The chronological order is from bottom to top. Framed all these scenes in a large door scheme, as you can see it at the main portal. The wide vertical and horizontal bands of this large field are richly decorated according to the principle of Lombard braid or ribbon tendrils, which has become here to pilasters with capitals. Following a similar rationale has also worked in book painting.
The single field of the " Creation of the Animals " is composed of different parts, which opposed different resistance to atmospheric agents. The figure to the left of God is preserved in all the subtleties of the drapery folds, while some of the animals but show clear signs of wear.
The other scenes are left below the " creation of Eve from Adam's rib ", next to the "tree of sin with the snake ," above the "Expulsion from Paradise" and the right of the " damnation to work". Here are the individual fields separated from plaits, the typical design elements of the Lombards.
Theodoric plates
Some stone tiles on the facade of the church are particularly difficult to convey to our current understanding, especially since they are also still get bad. They are also controversial in its importance in research.
These are the two peculiar scenes: the " pursuit of Theodoric " left and " Theodoric is chased to hell " to its right. This rudimentary obtained relief scenes shed light on a fundamental debate in the early history of Christianity: the struggle of the Arians against the Catholics.
Two other plates on the other side of the portal show the " duel between Theodoric and Odoacer " from the famous Raven battle, which actually belongs to the Germanic history, and the scene " Two fighting warriors on foot " (probably works of Niccolò ). Separately, the two fields in the middle of a once graceful female figure.
DuMont - art guide the authors write this sense: It is thought a representation of the struggle between the anti-papal Italian King Berengar II and the victorious German King Otto I to the beautiful Adelheid, with their escape from the Rocca di Garda, the end of the Italian Nationalkönigtums began. This interpretation is not proven, but not unlikely. The basic situation is certainly indicative of the entire northern Italian contemporary history. Even on the two lower " flagstone " also finds an esteemed by the Pope King a propaganda effectie ending.
On the right side tracked a rider on horseback a deer, the straight lures him into the gates of the underworld - Lucifer is far right Hell's entrance. This scene is the so-called " hell ride of Theodoric the Great ." It is identical with the Germanic legends hero Dietrich von Bern.
Dietrich von Bern was an Arian, and the Arians did not consider Jesus a god- but only for a god -like creature who was according to them the Pope, which was established by Jesus, not a representative of God on earth and claimed his power wrongly. This view of the Roman papacy led to centuries of conflict between the Catholic Church and the Arians, the subject eventually.
The hatred of the Holy See because of this disrespect of the Arians lived six centuries later, as this relief came. The church was then at the height of the confrontation with the German emperor for supremacy in Christendom, and could therefore not renewed doubt on its sole authority afford.
In order to brand any other political position to the Pope as heretical work of the devil, was once here tried the portal of San Zeno in Verona in the 12th century, the Arian Gothic king Theodoric from the 6th century and demonstratively sent to hell.
Bronze doors
Particular fame also enjoy the two doors were of San Zeno. It is the richest of all preserved Romanesque bronze doors ( from the period between 800 and 1200 about twenty of these doors in place have been preserved in central Europe, if you do not count the import pieces from Byzantium ). The bronze plates were originally not made for that door and do not come from the same time. Your dating is controversial. It is roughly divided two groups that will be incurred in 1100 and 1200 and which are distributed as approximately on the left and right door.
The sequence of illustrations is also disturbed. This is clear from the discrepancies in the narrative. The Expulsion from Paradise, for example, occurs twice. Perhaps the reliefs were determined for two different doors.
Father Andreas describes the different styles of the two masters as follows: " Old-fashioned, almost clumsy act the characters of this sculptor. Architectural forms, garments and faces, he has as much as possible simplified. The more powerful the act gestures and gestures. This master does not care about his characters standing upright. Space and landscape are not an issue for him. Nothing should distract from the immediacy of action and the action. From the elegant beauty of antiquity, his figures are worlds apart. " " The other masters created the Old Testament narratives and the Zeno- Legend of the right half of the door. His style is delicate and elegant. His prophets are dignified old men, and the line beauty of their rich robes reminiscent of the miniatures of precious manuscripts. An almost classical ' grandeur and tranquility separates his art from the rough gripping force of the other master. "
Longhouse
The nave was built from about 1118 to 1135. The three-aisled space is characterized by a strong alternation of supports. Of the arches is only the western obtained. The eastern arches broke off later. The church has neither a house nor a cross crossing.
In the space design of this church to connect two opposing principles. The older one is the so-called Ravenna. Thus the early Christian tradition is meant to let the inner walls of the nave between the lower arcades zone and a narrow upper window area flat in order to fit in a wide band paintings and mosaics reference. The other conception comes from the north and divides the wall clear plastic with vertical elements as they rise here of each pillar, as a service to the top. San Zeno takes this development as a as a middle position.
What is striking is the design of the crypt, as it is in the choir at half height. For the northern Italian architecture of the 12th century these large, complex Kryptenanlagen are indicative that lift the chorus like a stage. The conditions for this are again in the Speyer Cathedral, whose magnificent Kryptenanlage was taken in northern Italy, so also is here to take over German models.
In the east, all three naves reduce to the crypt and stand out to the choir, so divide into two superimposed church premises; from the ship you look into both. This San Zeno goes beyond the traditional architecture.
Choir and cloister
The chorus does not fit quite obvious to the facade, but was rebuilt in 1386 gothic, where you recorded the meantime become fashionable Schichtenornamentik. The cloister was built in total 1123-1313.
Altar
The picture of the high altar is designed in the form of a triptych. It was created by Andrea Mantegna about 1457 to 1460 and has become known as San Zeno Altarpiece in the history of art.