On Saturday we took a day trip to Mainz, a cathedral city about an hour and a half southeast of our place in Bornheim. David really enjoyed the drive, as it was on the famous Autobahn the entire way. We drove along at about 85 mph most of the time, with people whizzing by us in the fast lane at 120 mph! It didn't feel very scary, though, since (knock on wood) German drivers seem to pay attention and do obey the speed limit when there is one.
In Mainz, we finally found a paid parking in a garage beneath the Hilton hotel and as we walked towards the cathedral in the freezing cold we saw a few snow flurries. Mainz is a large city and its main attractions are the big, red Romanesque cathedral, a church with windows by Marc Chagall, and several good museums including the Gutenberg Museum. Below are a few photographic highlights.
View of the cathedral taken later, near sunset.
The Christmas Market on the south side of the cathedral. It is so nice to know that in any German city in December, all you have to do to get warm food is locate the cathedral.
The market continued around the west side.
Some nice Romanesque carvings next to the west door.
The ceiling inside.
The cathedral was a bit of a disappointment despite being my beloved Romanesque. Neither of us are big fans of red stone, it was very dark inside which made pictures difficult, there weren't many decorations of interest, and the side chapels were filled with the not-terribly-interesting tombs of archbishops.
But it was still worth the visit thanks to the cathedral museum, which is housed in two large rooms off the cloisters. We had the whole place to ourselves and everything was well-lit and nicely labeled (although in German only).
The lower room was a cellar built in the 11th century and it had the oldest artifacts - stones, sculptures, and paintings from Roman times to the 13th century. The upper level held paintings and sculptures from the 14th century to the present. Many of the artworks were originally from the cathedral and of very high quality.
Stone window frame with carvings, from c.900 AD.
Detail of the Twelve Apostles (c.1240), artfully captured by David.
The Damned (c.1240), from a large sculpture of the Last Judgment that includes the apostles above.
Stoning of St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr (Acts 7:54-60). Note the big rock hitting his head from the left!
Painting of St. Catherine, c.1310.
The Good Thief at the Crucifixion. Above the sculpture is an angel carrying his soul up to Heaven. For those not familiar with the story, two thieves were crucified on either side of Jesus. The one on his left cursed him and told him to climb down if he was the Son of God. The one on his right said he believed, and Jesus told him he would see him in Paradise.
Detail from a painting of four saints called "Help in Time of Need," c.1470.
Detail from a painting called "Christ Blessing the Children." Note the lack of a halo - this was painted after the Reformation (around 1550) by Lucas Cranach, who also painted portraits of Martin Luther.
Then it was a short uphill walk from the cathedral to St. Stephen's Church, where the main attraction is stained glass from 1978-85 by Marc Chagall. These were some of the last windows created by the famous modern artist, who was in his nineties at the time. The windows mainly depict biblical scenes, but their overall theme is said to be reconciliation between Jews and Christians and between France and Germany. (Chagall was Jewish and lived in France.)
St. Stephen's Church
One of the Chagall windows, which appears to be Joseph with his coat of many colors.
Our final stop was the Gutenberg Museum, which we toured quickly just before closing. It was surprisingly cheap (only 3 euros each) and had five floors full of exhibits related to Gutenberg and printed books. Definitely worth a stop should you find yourself in Mainz.
Early printed books on display on the first floor.
Johannes Gutenberg (1400-68) was from Mainz and is famous for inventing a printing press that used movable type. It revolutionized printing and allowed books to be quickly and widely published. This was a timely invention for Martin Luther, who came along in the next century - it allowed him to quickly distribute copies of his German Bible, sermons and propaganda. I remember from church history exams that "Gutenberg's movable type" is considered one of the main factors in Luther's success.
Illustrated book printed in Paris in 1498
The earliest printed books were made to look like the manuscripts they replaced and were very beautiful. The most famous of these early books was the Gutenberg Bible, printed in 1455. Being pre-Luther, it is in Latin, and around 180 copies were produced.
As the inventor's hometown, Mainz proudly owns the two earliest copies, which are in a vault in the center of the second floor of the Gutenberg Museum. The vault was really something, with metal doors two feet thick and a glass display box with wires embedded in it everywhere. David was really impressed. The Bibles were beautiful, with perfectly uniform text patterned after manuscript calligraphy, enhanced by hand-painted letters at the start of each chapter.
Another highlight of the museum was the collection of printing machines, which included examples from Gutenberg's time to modern newspaper presses. Some of those from the 19th century were beautifully decorated as a marketing technique.
