The History of St. Michael’s Church

The placement of the nave between the two cross-aisles and the equal transept squares creates a balance between the east and west direction to the same extent as the upward groups of towers. St. Michael’s conveys the sense of a peaceful composition, of being withdrawn into itself, reaching out in length as well as in height, pausing in meditation, yet ready to take action at any time. This special connection between balanced contradictions has been pursued since antiquity as a worthwhile and ultimate goal.

Liturgical demands rather than architectural design played a major role during the formation of the two choirs. Three apses are found in the east, immediately following the transept, in which the centre apse correspondingly accentuates the centre aisle; the two side apses are fitted with a gallery floor. The eastern end, which is designated as the monks’ choir, forms a square with the apse above the crypt, which in the late Romanesque period was clearly separated from the main aisle by magnificent choir screens.

Its closed multi-tower design gives the church the appearance of a well-protected fort. Following periods of political unrest, the tower was a symbol of power that reflected spiritual and religious stability. On the central axis, the massive pyramid-covered crossing towers form the center of the tower landscape, accompanied by the polygonal broken stair towers at the end of each transept, which terminate cylindrically above the roof edge. next site ...

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