POLSKA PÓŁNOCNO-WSCHODNIA (POMORZE WSCHODNIE)

• Authors: Domasłowski Jerzy

Title variants

EN

EASTERN POMERANIA

• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

In Eastern Pomerania, i.e. on the site of present Elbląg, Gdańsk, Olsztyn, Toruń and partially Bydgoszcz and Ciechanów voivodships, military operations of the Second World War brought about a destruction of old wall-paintings at Boręty, Elbląg, partially in St Mary’s Church in Gdańsk and in the castle’s church at Malbork. Some other, usually not so well preserved objects were plastered in the later years (e.g. at Tujka). At the same time there took place new discoveries which enriched the information on Pomerania paintings, namely in Gdańsk, Morąg, Starogard Gdański, Sępopol. A particularly big number of discoveries was made in the Chełmińska Land: at Chełmno, Brodnica, Golub, Kowalewo Pomorskie, Nowe Miasto Lubawskie, Okonin and Toruń, where paintings were found not only in churches but in secular buildings as well. Many art monuments, both newly uncovered and those well-known already before the war were subjected to preservation works carried out mainly by monuments conservation work-shops in Toruń and in Gdańsk. ' Archival studies performed made it possible to establish a degree of authenticity of some decorations repainted in the 19th century. The iconography of paintings in the cathedra at Kwidzyń is original only partially. Studies carried out by Marian Arszyński made it possible to state that paintings on the vaulting of the cathedral at Chełmża were a conscious forgery, a work of Konrad Steinbrecht. To a large extent he is also the author of paintings at the castle’s church at Malbork. The oldest example of wall-painting in Eastern Pomerania is a decoration of walls in the church of St John in Toruń (il. 1). The first examples of figurative painting were created in ca 1340—1350 and belonged to the so-called linear style (unpreserved paintings a t Königsberg), Świecie and perhaps the original decoration of the castle’s church at Malbork. The mid-14th century was the time of the creation of paintings at Chełmno (St John’s Church and a parish church). Paintings in Toruń (St Jacob’s Church, St John’s Church, il. 2, a tenement house at 17/19, Żeglarska Street, il. 3) were executed in ca 1350—1360, those in Arnau in Samland — in ca 1350—1370. About 1360 there came into being a few art monuments in which the importance of colour got increased, namely at Nowe Miasto Lubawskie, St Catherine’s Church in Gdańsk, a presbytery in St John’s Church in Toruń. The years of 1380—1420 were the period of the flourishment of wall-painting in Pomerania. The Coronation of Mary a t Lidzbark Warmiński, the work of a painter who had arrived from Czech, as well as the legend of St Mary Magdalene in St Jacob’s Church at Toruń were created in ca 1380 ; one can see in them a deepening of space and a further growth of the significance of coloured layer. The paintings in the southern nave of St Mary’s Church in Toruń that linked attainments of Czech and Italian painting were made in 1380—1390. A member of that school worked also at Okonin and Nowe Miasto (il. 4). A composition in St John’s Church in Toruń was painted at a somewhat later date ; it represented the Crucifixion and the Last Judgment, where the realism of figures is still bigger. A continuation of realistic tendencies can be found in the paintings in the former houses of merchants’ guild at Toruń, Grudziądz and Chełmno (a parish church). Paintings at Orneta (il. 5) constitute a direct reference to the works of the circle of Master Theodoric. About 1400 there came into life paintings in the post-Dominican church at Chełmno (the Crucifixion) and in the Lidzbark castle (a gallery), attracting the attention with its cold scumbling colouring. The last link of that group was the unpreserved Lamentation at Elbląg. At the same time there appeared paintings made in a less realistic and more linear way — Samland group : Königsberg, Juditten and Lochstedt, in the organ-loft of St Jacob’s Church, in a tenement house at 15, Szczytna Street at Toruń, in the chapel of great masters and finally in their bedroom in Malbork, and finally in the church at Germau. A continuation of the so-called soft style could be seen in an unpreserved simultaneous Passion composition in St Mary’s Church ni Gdańsk (about 1425). In a smilar composition in St Nicolaus Church (about 1430—1440) the element of graphicality of line grows in strength. In the two examples the authors based most probably on patterns from Netherlands and Burgundy. In the second quarter of the 15th century there came into existence a votive scene in St Mary’s Church in Toruń (il. 6), apostles in Marianka, allegories of virtues and sins in Gdańsk’s Market Hall, representations of bishops at Lidzbark Warmiński. The form of paintings at Zieleń (ca 1420) shows at its links with graphic arts. The Last Judgment in St Anne’s Church at Frombork (ca 1433) and a painting at Dzietrzychów are the examples of a drawing style. The Crucifixion at Krzyżanów (ca 1450, il. 9) is an attempt to combine a drawing tendency with setting the figure in a vast space. Paintings from the third quarter of the 15th century show a relatively big dependence on graphic arts (Morąg, Nowe, Orneta, St Catherine’s Church in Gdańsk — il. 10), A certain lowering of the level of artistic creation in that period was associated with a destructive course of the thirteen-year-long war in the years of 1454—1466. At the end of that century both graphic arts (Golub—il. 11, Lidzbark Warmiński— Watzenrod’s oratory) and table painting (St George legend in St Mary’s Church in Gdańsk, Łabędnik — il. 12) were used as the examples to follow. In the first quarter of the 16th century late- Gothic elements co-existed with Renaissance features, e.g. in St Jacob’s Church in Toruń. On the whole, Pomeranian paintings display didactic and moralizing themes. The most frequently found theme was the figures of apostles and of other saints, expressing eclesiological contents. In some secular interiors the scene of the Coronation of Mary, having an eclosiological character acquired a political aspect as well. Moreover, one can see illustrations of theological treatises: Speculum Humanae Salvationis (Königsberg, Arnau), a commentary to the Song of Songs (St John’s Church at Chełmno), St Bonaventura’s treatise on the Tree of Life (Toruń, St John’s Church). Quite popular was also the eschatological theme (the Last Judgment, Deesis, Wise and Foolish Virgins). A number of paintings had passion and eucharistie themes as their subject-matter. Worshiped effigies of Jesus (the Crucifixion from Volto Santo) and of Mary (Temple’s Servant) as well as Veraicon were also often shown. Apart from apostles and four Holy Virgins, the most popular amongst the paintings with hagiographie content were St Christopher, St George, and St Mary Magdalene. There could also be seen frequent secular, allegoric and moralizing representations, occasionally based on literary sources. The paintings were subordinated to architecture. The most popular decorative system were framings composed of human figures; cycles of paintings in quarters were also often met. Quite often, mainly in the castles, the paintings decorated face walls, while in tenement houses they were put on wall niches. Paintings imitated tympanum, table pictures and altar retable. Next to the patronage of the Teutonic Knights, the centre of which was Malbork, an important role, mainly in Warmia and in Samland, was played by the patronage of higher clergymen, bishops and chapters. Of great significance was also the patronage of the townspeople. However, it is not always possible to separate the scope of influence of individual social groups. Except for a painter called Peter of Malbork, it is also impossible to associate preserved objects with their authors known from the historic relays only.

• Publisher: Narodowy Instytut Dziedzictwa
• Journal: Ochrona Zabytków
• Year: 1980
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 132-141

Dates

published

1980

Contributors

author

Domasłowski Jerzy

• mgr

References

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