The Schnütgen Museum (Museum Schnütgen in German) in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

is devoted to Christian religious art, mainly

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, but some parts of the collection, such as its

textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not t ...

s and prints, extend from antiquity to the modern period. In 1906, the collection of Alexander Schnütgen was donated to the city, and the collection has continued to expand, so that until the opening of a new building in 2010, only about 10% of its 13,000 items could be displayed. Now some 2,000 objects are on display in 1900 sq. metres of gallery space, with an additional 1300 sq. metres for special exhibitions. Schnütgen (1843–1918) was a Catholic priest and theologian; according to the museum website "Up to now people tell stories about his zealous and sometimes crafty collection tactics". Since 1956, the museum has occupied the large Romanesque church of St. Cäcilien, founded in 881 for noble canonesses, with the present building dating from 1130–60, with murals from about 1300. An annex built by architect

Karl Band Karl Friedrich Heinrich Band (8 November 1900 – 6 October 1995) was a German architect. Origin Born in Cologne, Band was the son of the architect Heinrich Band (1855–1919), a long-time associate of the building councillor Hermann Otto Pfl ...

was added in the 1950s, and new buildings (part of the ''Kulturquartier, “Culture quarter“'') opened in 2010. Highlights of the collection include a Romanesque tympanum from St Cecilia's itself, several large wooden

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

es, including the 11th century ''Cross of St George's'', as well as a large collection of early bronze ones, including the only other work generally attributed to Rainer of Huy apart from his Liège baptismal font. The museum has a late Carolingian

evangeliary The Evangeliary or Book of the Gospels is a liturgical book containing only those portions of the four gospels which are read during Mass or in other public offices of the Church. The corresponding terms in Latin are and . The Evangeliary develo ...

of 860–880, and a single leaf from the English

St Albans Psalter The St Albans Psalter, also known as the Albani Psalter or the Psalter of Christina of Markyate, is an English illuminated manuscript, one of several psalters known to have been created at or for St Albans Abbey in the 12th century.Rodney M. Thoms ...

. The "Comb of St Heribert" is a 9th-century

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals ...

liturgical comb A liturgical comb is a decorated comb used ceremonially in both Catholic and Orthodox Christianity during the Middle Ages, and in Byzantine Rite to this day. The exact use of liturgical combs during the Middle Ages remains unclear. They may have ...

, and the "Harrach Diptych" a

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippi ...

ivory of about 810 (on loan from the Ludwig collection). Ivories, stained glass, textiles including

vestment Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially by Eastern Churches, Catholics (of all rites), Anglicans, and Lutherans. Many other groups also make use of liturgical garments; this ...

s, metalwork and paintings are all well represented. Alexander Schnütgen had organised influential exhibitions of his collection while it was still private, and from the 1970s the museum (using extra exhibition spaces) organized a series of landmark exhibitions of medieval art: * ''Rhein und Maas'' (1972,

Mosan art Mosan art is a regional style of art from the valley of the Meuse in present-day Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany. Although in a broader sense the term applies to art from this region from all periods, it generally refers to Romanesque ar ...

) * ''Monumenta Annonis – Köln und Siegburg. Weltbild und Kunst im hohen Mittelalter'' (1975) * ''Die

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und der

schöne Stil International Gothic is a period of Gothic art which began in Burgundy, France, and northern Italy in the late 14th and early 15th century. It then spread very widely across Western Europe, hence the name for the period, which was introduced by th ...

1350–1400, Europäische Kunst unter den Luxemburgern'' (1978) * ''Ornamenta Ecclesia – Kunst und Künstler der Romanik '' (1985, Romanesque metalwork and other church art) * ''Himmelslicht. Europäische Glasmalerei im Jahrhundert des Kölner Dombaus (1248–1349)'' (1998, stained glass). The enormous catalogues for these exhibitions, some running to three volumes, remain important works of reference. Catalogues of the permanent collection of the museum are being published in several volumes.Museum website Bestandskatalog
Accessed January 11, 2010 A touring exhibition in America of objects from the museum in 2000 also produced a catalogue in English.

Notes

References

Official website
accessed October 07, 2016 *Lasko, Peter, ''Ars Sacra'', Penguin History of Art (now Yale), Penguin, 1972 *Legner, Anton (ed). ''Ornamenta Ecclesiae, Kunst und Künstler der Romanik.'' Catalogue of an exhibition in the Schnütgen Museum, Köln, 1985. 3 vols.
Sacred Destinations
accessed January 11, 2010

accessed January 11, 2010

Notes

References

Further reading