Post-War Restoration of the Stately Buildings in Poznań
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MIASTO THE CITY [RE] [RE] KONSTRU— CON— OWANE STRUCTED POST-WAR RESTORATION OF THE STATELY BUILDINGS IN POZNAŃ Texts and graphic materials from a temporary exhibition held at the Cathedral Lock pt. 3. Gothic splendour TABLE OF CONTENTS 3. Gothic splendour 3 Prima sedes episoporum Poloniae 4 Estimating the extent of damage 5 Knowledge in the service of reconstruction 6 (Re)construction of the monument 7 Rearranging the interior 10 Recreating the past 12 Cathedral’s new robes 13 Photo report from the exhibition 14 3 Gothic splendour Damage to the Poznań Cathedral caused by the war and the resulting securing works which revealed the building’s former walls, in- spired conservators to recreate the building’s Gothic spirit. However, the fact that the Cathe- dral looks today the way it does is not merely the result of research carried out by archaeol- ogists and conservators. To some extent, it is also based on people’s ideas at the time about what a perfect cathedral should look like. Pre-war cathedral – view from the east, the 30s of the 20th century, photo by R.S. Ulatowski, from the MKZ collection, Poznan Prima sedes episcoporum Poloniae 4 Considered the oldest in Poland, the Cathe- Not always was the look of the pre-war Cathedral, de- dral in Poznań dates back to the 10th century. veloped by the 17th and 18th-century builders, awein- It was built when the first bishopric in Poland spiring. The peculiar shape of the tower tops finished was established in 968 in Poznań. Over the with obelisks as well as the spectacular portico may centuries, the Cathedral has changed. How- have been admired by many, but the stocky building ever, since it has always been rebuilt on the and heavy façade were repeatedly criticised. same foundations, it has also managed to maintain symbolic continuity. At the times of the first Piasts, it was a massive stone building, which proved to have defensive qualities. Mid-13th century saw the beginning of the over-250- year-old process of shaping Cathedral’s Gothic style. This process was complete at the beginning of the 16th century when the façade with two towers was re- built. This façade inspired the authors of the post-war development plans. From the 17th century the Cathedral was given the lavish Baroque shape, which was in vogue at the time. In the last quarter of the 18th century the façade was rebuilt according to Classicism with a touch of unconventionali- ty and avant-garde. It was also then that the monumen- tal main altar, designed by Augustyn Schöps and Václav Böhm, was created. Former Gothic walls, rebuilt, plas- tered and embellished, changed beyond recognition. Pre-war cathedral façade, the 30s of the 20th century, photo by R.S. Ulatowski, Pre-war cathedral – the main nave with the altar, the 30s of the 20th century, from the MKZ collection, Poznan photo by R.S. Ulatowski, from the MKZ collection, Poznan 5 During the Second World War, Germans turned the Cathedral into a storehouse. During the Battle of Poznań, the building caught fire due to shelling. All roofs burnt down and part of the façade along with the top col- lapsed. Moreover, the nave burnt down, whereas parget and stucco partly came off the walls, revealing parts of Cathedral’s Gothic walls. What survived the fortunes of war in good condition were the ceilings, the ring of chapels with valuable décor and the 18th-century main altar and pulpit. Immediately after the military operations ended, the work Destroyed interior of the Catherdal, 1945, photo by R.S. Ulatowski, from the Destroyed facade of the Cathedral, 1945, photo by J. Dańda, from the MKZ collection, Poznan on securing the structure of the Cathedral commenced. MKZ collection, Poznan As a result of archaeological research and the work of architects as well as due to removing the plaster and sational, whereas the uncovered old walls of the church (…) adornments, it was confirmed that 70-80% of the build- endure the works well and, in terms of statistics, do not give ing’s structure was medieval. Basilica’s Gothic core and any reason to be concerned about the Cathedral.” many late-medieval elements from the nave and the al- tar, including the triforium were uncovered. The remains Despite the ubiquitous debris and signs of destruction, of a large Gothic window and a decorative entrance (por- tours around Poznań, organised for the general public tal) made of authentic enamel bricks were discovered in shortly after the war, enjoyed great popularity. Guided the façade. In 1947 Kronika Miasta Poznania (the City of tours of the destroyed Cathedral in February 1946, given Poznań Chronicle) wrote enthusiastically that “(…) the re- by the forefather of Poznań guides Franciszek Jaśkowiak, sults of the excavation works have clear focus and are sen- gathered over 400 people. Destroyed Cathedral – eastern view, 1945, photo by Z. Zielonacki, from the MKZ collection, Poznan Knowledge in the service of reconstruction 6 In January 1946, on the initiative of prof. Jan Zachwato- wicz and Primate August Hlond, a special conference on the reconstruction of the Cathedral, attended by the lead- ing experts and representatives of the government au- thorities, was held. Apart from the General Monuments and Historic Sites Conservator Jan Zachwatowicz, other participants included: Province Monument and Historic Sites Conservator Zdzisław Kępiński, rev. prof. Szczęsny Dettloff, Gwidon Chmarzyński PhD (art historians), Jan Cieśliński and Zbigniew Zieliński (architects) and archae- ologist prof. Józef Kostrzewski. Initially, two major concepts were considered. The clergy advocat- ed the return to the pre-war structure but with modern accessories. Conservators, on the other hand, promoted the return to the Gothic style due to the discovery of the historic walls. There was also a pecu- liar idea of Engineer Ponisz to demolish the whole structure altogeth- er and build a new one in the same place. Cardinal August Hlond (Wikimedia commons) Zdzisław Kępiński (Wikmpedia commons) Eventually, a unanimous decision was reached to rebuild the Cathe- dral according to the Gothic style, not only due to the fact that the preserved medieval structure was discovered, but also because a Gothic cathedral was considered at the time to be a perfect church. This decision was an expression of the aesthetic needs of the time and met society’s expectations. (Re)construction 7 of the monument Poznań Cathedral was rebuilt in 1945-1956. The reconstruction works aspired to make the church even more grand than before the war. That is why, the upper parts of the walls were raised by about one metre, the flying buttresses over the aisles were reconstruct- ed on the basis of existing remains, and the ceiling was rebuilt according to the Goth- ic style and covered with copper sheets. To maintain the correct proportion of various parts of the building, the façade towers were also raised by four metres. Gothic architec- ture was reintroduced into all parts of the church. More narrow Gothic windows replaced the Baroque ones. The façade gained a grand Gothic top as well as a large Gothic window and a rose window. Its shape was free- ly designed on the basis of a piece of a decorative pat- tern (the so-called tracery). The surface of the Cathedral Square was lowered to the level it used to have in the Gothic period. To strengthen the building, it was decid- ed that a reinforced concrete “corset” would be installed Fragment of the passage behind the altar, photo by L. Perz, around 1945, Fragment of the passage behind the altar today, photo by CVK from the MKZ/WUOZ collection 8 he made a suggestion that all five towers should be uni- form and shaped according to one pattern. A decision was made at the local level to rebuild Baroque tops of the three eastern towers in the pre-war style. For the two main western towers architect Franciszek Morawski cre- ated a design of plain, slender Gothic tops. The design was advocated by Archbishop Walenty Dymek. Howev- er, conservatorial authorities in Warsaw maintained that the tower tops should be uniform. At their insistence the Church eventually accepted the plan to reconstruct the towers according to the Baroque style on the basis of an existing 18th-century drawing. Reconstructed rose window on the cathedral façade, 1952, photo by E. Kręglewska, from the MKZ collection, Poznan and concealed under the roofs of the aisles and chapels. For a long time the choice of the tower tops remained a thorny issue. The General Monuments and Historic Sites Conservator left this issue open, allowing the choice of the Gothic, Baroque and contemporary style. However, A comparison of the cathedral towers in baroque, classicistic (before 1939) and contemporary styles 9 The Baroque cathedral, 1st half of the 18th century, according to M. Busse, Project of the cathedral towers, by R.S. Ulatowski, 1949, photo by R.S. Ulatowski, Project of the cathedral towers, by F. Morawski, 1948, photo by R.S. Ulatowski, J. Łukaszewicz, photo from the MKZ collection in Poznan. from the MKZ/WUOZ collection from the MKZ/WUOZ collection Rearranging the interior 10 Due to the post-war reconstruction works, Ca- with a late-Gothic one dating back thedral’s interior went through a real meta- to 1512. It was brought to Poznań morphosis. Gothic arches replaced Baroque at the beginning of the 1950s from arcades between the aisles. The triforium was St Catherine’s Church in Góra Śląska. connected along the walls, even though orig- inally it had been separated by three eastern Some elements of the pre-war altar towers. The nave’s walls were raised by about can still be found on the Cathedral Is- two metres and the ceilings were reconstruct- land in Poznań: the statues of St Peter ed in a more liberal way: Gothic stellar vaults and St Paul can be seen in the façade were introduced in the aisles and in the pas- of the Archbishop’s Palace when one sage behind the altar; cross vaults were intro- looks at it from the garden; the main duced above the altar.