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The ''Peterskirche'' ( en, St. Peter's Church) is a Baroque Roman Catholic parish church in Vienna, Austria. It was transferred in 1970 by the Archbishop of Vienna
Franz Cardinal König Franz may refer to: People * Franz (given name) * Franz (surname) Places * Franz (crater), a lunar crater * Franz, Ontario, a railway junction and unorganized town in Canada * Franz Lake, in the state of Washington, United States – see ...
to the priests of the
Opus Dei Opus Dei, formally known as the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei ( la, Praelatura Sanctae Crucis et Operis Dei), is an institution of the Catholic Church whose members seek personal Christian holiness and strive to imbue their work an ...
.


The first church

The oldest church building (of which nothing remains today) dates back to the Early Middle Ages, and there is speculation that it could be the oldest church in Vienna (see
Ruprechtskirche St. Rupert's Church (german: Ruprechtskirche) is a Romanesque church in Vienna, Austria. Traditionally considered to be the oldest church in the city, St. Rupert's Church is dedicated to Saint Rupert of Salzburg, patron saint of the salt merchant ...
). That Roman church was built on the site of a Roman encampment. This church was replaced with a Romanesque church with a nave and two aisles. It is believed to have been established by Charlemagne around 800, although there is no evidence supporting this view. At the outside of the church, there is a relief sculpture by R. Weyr
consecrate Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
d to the founding of the church by Charlemagne. In any case, a church of Saint Peter in Vienna is first mentioned in 1137. Around the end of the 12th century, the church became part of the Schottenstift. The mediaeval church had three altars, with an apse in the south instead of the normal eastern orientation. This unusual feature has triggered many discussions among experts, and it is suspected that the church was adapted from a previously secular building. The church was surrounded by shops, and a nearby building housed the ''Stadtguardia'', a forerunner of the modern police. The old church burned down in 1661 and was given only makeshift repairs. The decision to build a new church was taken up with the arrival of the Fraternity of the Holy Trinity of which the emperor Leopold I was a member. He had taken a vow to rebuild this church when Vienna was ravaged by the
plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...
in 1679–1680.


The new building

The construction of the new
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
church was begun around 1701 under
Gabriele Montani Gabriele is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name Surname *Al Gabriele, American comic book artist *Angel Gabriele (1956–2016), American comic book artist *Corrado Gabriele (born 1966), Italian politi ...
, who was replaced by
Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt (14 November 1668 – 16 November 1745) was an Austrian baroque architect and military engineer who designed stately buildings and churches and whose work had a profound influence on the architecture of the Habsburg E ...
in 1703. The design was inspired by the St. Peter's Basilica of the Vatican in Rome.
Francesco Martinelli Franz Martinelli (or Italian: Francesco Martinelli; 1651 – 28 October 1708) was an Austrian architect. In 1684 he was in charge of the restoration work of the Servitenkirche in Vienna. In 1687 he also participated in the construction of the H ...
was the main architect. By 1722, most of the building was finished, and in 1733 the ''Peterskirche'' was finally consecrated to the
Holy Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
. The new church was the first domed structure in
baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
Vienna. Due to the confinement of available space, it was built in a compact form, with its oval interior housing an astonishing amount of space and rectangular attachments. The church's interior has a lot of gold
stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...
. The
turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Objective turret, an indexable holder of multiple lenses in an optical microscope * Mi ...
ed dome was mainly designed by Matthias Steinl, who was also responsible for the interior decoration and the pews with
cherub A cherub (; plural cherubim; he, כְּרוּב ''kərūḇ'', pl. ''kərūḇīm'', likely borrowed from a derived form of akk, 𒅗𒊏𒁍 ''karabu'' "to bless" such as ''karibu'', "one who blesses", a name for the lamassu) is one of the u ...
ic heads. The
fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
es were originally painted by the Italian
Andrea Pozzo Andrea Pozzo (; Latinized version: ''Andreas Puteus''; 30 November 1642 – 31 August 1709) was an Italian Jesuit brother, Baroque painter, architect, decorator, stage designer, and art theoretician. Pozzo was best known for his grandiose fresc ...
, whose paintings were removed after his death. As a result, in 1713,
Johann Michael Rottmayr Johann Michael Rottmayr (11 December 1656 – 25 October 1730) was an Austrian painter. Biography Rottmayr was born in Laufen an der Salzach, Bavaria. Along with his Laufen-born contemporary, Hans Adam Weissenkircher, he received his edu ...
was able to start a completely new set. The fresco in the cupola represents the ''Coronation of Our Lady''. On the triumphal arch one can see the coat of arms of emperor Leopold I. In the spandrels around the dome are portrayals of the four
Evangelist Evangelist may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a c ...
s and four Fathers of the Church, painted by the Viennese artist J.G. Schmidt. The same artist also painted the altarpiece in the side chapel of St. Michael. The Baroque high altar was created by
Antonio Galli Bibiena The Galli–Bibiena family, or Galli da Bibiena (also spelled "Bibbiena"), was a family of Italian artists of the 17th and 18th centuries, including: "Ferdinando Galli Bibiena Online" (overview), John Malyon, ''Artcyclopedia'', 2005, Artcycl ...
and his
Bolognese Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nati ...
workshop (construction) and
Martino Altomonte Martino Altomonte, born Johann Martin Hohenberg (8 May 1657, Naples – 14 September 1745, Vienna) was an Italian Baroque painter of Austrian descent who mainly worked in Poland and Austria. Life and work Martino Altomonte (Johann Martin Hohen ...
(1657–1745) (
altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...
). The altarpiece portrays the ''Healing of the Lame by St. Peter and St. John in Jerusalem''. The same artist also painted the altarpiece in the side chapel of the Holy Family. The small painting of the Immaculate Conception above the high altar is by the 19th century artist
Kupelwieser Kupelwieser is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Joseph Kupelwieser (1791–1866), Austrian playwright, librettist, dramaturge, and theatre director *Leopold Kupelwieser Leopold Kupelwieser (17 October 1796, Markt Piesting ...
. The shrines in the side chapels of the Holy Family and St. Michael contain martyrs from Roman
catacomb Catacombs are man-made subterranean passageways for religious practice. Any chamber used as a burial place is a catacomb, although the word is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire. Etymology and history The first place to be referred ...
s, donated by
Cardinal Kollonitz Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, th ...
in 1733. They were clothed in this period and placed in the glass coffins. The gilded pulpit is a by Matthias Steinl (1726) with on top of the canopy a representation of the Holy Trinity. Opposite the pulpit there is a gold-and-silver representation of the ''Martyrdom of St. John of Nepomuk'', sculpted by
Lorenzo Mattielli Lorenzo Mattielli (1678/1688 ? – 27 or 28 April 1748) was an Italian sculptor from the Late Baroque period. His name has also variously been written as ''Matielli'', ''Mattiely'', ''Matthielli'', and ''Mathielli''. He supplied statuary for pal ...
. On top of it is a statue of ''The Mother of God''. Over the years, the paintings had become darker, and the interior began to take on a grey appearance. From 1998 to 2004, the church underwent a renovation, which returned the paintings to their original colouring and brightness.


Access

The Peterskirche is located on Petersplatz, right next to
Graben In geology, a graben () is a depressed block of the crust of a planet or moon, bordered by parallel normal faults. Etymology ''Graben'' is a loan word from German, meaning 'ditch' or 'trench'. The word was first used in the geologic contex ...
and just west of the Pestsäule. The street ''Jungferngasse'' cuts through the pedestrian zone and leads directly to the church. The Peterskirche is largely obscured by the surrounding buildings, and can only be seen clearly from directly in front.


See also

* History of early modern period domes


Gallery

Wien - Peterskirche, Innenansicht.JPG, Interior view from the gallery Iglesia de San Pedro, Viena, Austria, 2020-01-31, DD 92.jpg, Interior of Peterskirche Iglesia de San Pedro, Viena, Austria, 2020-01-31, DD 89-91 HDR.jpg, Detail of the dome's frescoes St. Peters Church (Peterskirche) (7815694026).jpg, ''Coronation of Our Lady'' fresco Interior_of_St._Peter's_Church,_Vienna.jpg, ''The Heart of Mary'' in the side chapel of St. Antony Peterskirche Kanzel 2, Vienna.jpg, Baroque pulpit Organ of St. Peter's Church (2).jpg, Organ Peterskirche Vienna plan.svg, Groundplan


References

*The information in this article is partly based on a translation of its German counterpart :de:Peterskirche (Wien). *St. Peter's Church, a small English guide - available in the church. *Eyewitness Travel Guides - Vienna (in Dutch translation : Capitool reisgidsen: Wenen); Dorling Kindersley Ltd. Londen, 1994


Notes


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Peters Church, Vienna Churches completed in 1733 Peter Opus Dei Baroque architecture in Vienna Buildings and structures in Innere Stadt Church buildings with domes