St. Salvator's Church, Utrecht
Religion | |
---|---|
Affiliation | Catholic Church |
Status | demolished |
Location | |
Location | Utrecht, Netherlands |
Geographic coordinates | 52°05′25″N 5°07′18″E / 52.0903°N 5.1217°E |
Materials | Tuff |
The Sint-Salvator church (also called the Old-Munster church) was one of five
The first St. Salvator church
The exact history of first church building is not known but it was possibly built c. 695 and its presence was definitely established by 724. It was established by
During
The St. Salvator church was located southwest of a second small church building, known as the Holy-Cross chapel, which was likely the original St. Martin's church. That small church building was demolished in 1826. Until the 10th century, these two churches formed a double cathedral building but it is not clear whether both church functioned as a cathedral. The bishop's cathedra was installed, c. 750, in St. Martin's church, the direct predecessor of the later Dom Church, which from then on was known as St. Martin's Cathedral.
Restoration and rebuilding in later times
The church was restored and possibly expanded during the episcopate of bishop
Bishop
The main
Around this time the St. Salvator church was designated a collegiate church with its own chapter and immunity from civil law in favor of
In 1131 and 1253 the church building was damaged by fire, but restored in both cases.
The final church
In its final form, the St. Salvator church was a Tuff-stone basilica with a deep choir, a transept and short nave, and a westwork with two towers. While the 10th-century nave and westwork, and 11th-century choir and transept were Romanesque, the church was later adapted to the Gothic style. Several new structures were also built, such as a school at the southern side of the tower and a library on the southern side of the choir.
A map and construction drawings of the church in its final form were made by Aernout van Buchel. These drawings, which have been preserved, were made either shortly before or after the demolition of the church in 1587-1588. Another source is a description made by Canon Jan Mersman, in 1592, of the demolished church. Not much remains of the church; most of its foundation had been removed. Today one can see the outlines of the choir and part of the transept in the paving of the Domplein, the square in front of the Dom Church.
Notes
References
- New International Encyclopedia. Vol. 5 (2nd ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead. p. 307.
Bibliography
- Stöver, Reitze J. (1997). De Salvator- of Oudmunsterkerk te Utrecht : stichtingsmonument van het bisdom Utrecht. Clavis kunsthistorische monografieën (in Dutch). Vol. 16. Utrecht: Clavis. ISBN 9789075616040.
External links
- Initiatief Domplein 2013(Dutch)
- Salvatorkerk in Collectie Utrecht(Dutch)