Kurpfälzisches Museum
Encyclopedia
The Kurpfälzisches Museum (Palatinate Museum) is a museum of art and archaeology in Heidelberg
, Germany
. It is located in the Palais Morass. It was founded in the late 1870s, when the city of Heidelberg purchased the private collection of the artist and art historian Charles de Graimberg.
Findings from the Lower Neckar Valley
, including a facsimile of the lower jaw of Homo heidelbergensis
discovered in Mauer
; Roman artefacts; a life-sized reconstruction of the mithraeum
of Heidelberg; and items dating from Heidelberg's period as the Electoral Palatinate residence.
Paintings
Works from the 15th to the 20th century, including portraits of historic Heidelberg figures (Frederick V
, Elizabeth Charlotte, Perkeo
); religious works by Rogier van der Weyden and Lucas Cranach the Elder
; 17th century Dutch still life
s; 18th century rococo
pictures; 19th century works by Carl Rottmann
, Anselm Feuerbach
and Wilhelm Trübner
; and 20th century works by Alexander Kanoldt
, Alexei Jawlensky and Max Beckmann
.
Graphic arts
7,000 watercolours and drawings, and just under 13,000 printed graphics, from the Middle Ages to the 20th century, including works by Peter Anton von Verschaffelt
, Carl Philipp Fohr, Georg Schrimpf
and Marc Chagall
. Local artists are well represented, especially those from the Romantic period
and the 20th century. Many of the older works provide historic representations of the city, the castle
, and the former Palatinate. Works on paper are sensitive to light and cannot be put on permanent display.
Applied arts
The applied arts collection includes porcelain, coins, medallions, furniture and glassware. Four of the rooms have been furnished to recreate the 18th and 19th centuries, featuring for example Frankenthal porcelain
and portraits of the prince-electors. There are also representative costumes of a Heidelberg family from around 1750 to 1930, and a household silver collection that once belonged to Countess Palatine Elisabeth Auguste (1721–1794).
Sculpture
Works from the 12th to the 20th century, including medieval gravestones from the former Augustine monastery, early baroque sculptures from houses in Heidelberg's old town, and sculptures of the Old Bridge, Prince-Elector Charles Theodore
and the goddess Minerva
. Two of the most important pieces are Tilman Riemenschneider
's Altar of the Apostles (1509) and Wilhelm Lehmbruck
's stone-cast Rückblickende.
Municipal history
Historical items, including the oldest stone relics from Heidelberg, a reconstructed kitchen from around 1600, models of the Old Bridge by the 18th century sculptor Linck, and a sequence of pictures by Ferdinand Kobell
portraying the destruction of the bridge by floating ice in 1784. There is also a model of the medieval core of the old town.
Max Berk Textile Collection
Belonging to the museum's applied arts department, but displayed separately in a former evangelical church, this collection includes women's costumes going back to the second half of the 18th century, along with accessories, everyday items and decorative textile objects. There are also artefacts from India
, Bali
, Java
and Peru
, and a collection of British and American patchwork quilt
s from the last 200 years.
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It is located in the Palais Morass. It was founded in the late 1870s, when the city of Heidelberg purchased the private collection of the artist and art historian Charles de Graimberg.
Collections
ArchaeologyFindings from the Lower Neckar Valley
Neckar
The Neckar is a long river, mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, but also a short section through Hesse, in Germany. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the River Rhine...
, including a facsimile of the lower jaw of Homo heidelbergensis
Homo heidelbergensis
Homo heidelbergensis is an extinct species of the genus Homo which may be the direct ancestor of both Homo neanderthalensis in Europe and Homo sapiens. The best evidence found for these hominins date between 600,000 and 400,000 years ago. H...
discovered in Mauer
Mauer (Baden)
Mauer is a village in south western Germany. It is located between Heidelberg and Sinsheim in the Rhein-Neckar district in the state of Baden-Württemberg....
; Roman artefacts; a life-sized reconstruction of the mithraeum
Mithraeum
A Mithraeum is a place of worship for the followers of the mystery religion of Mithraism.The Mithraeum was either an adapted natural cave or cavern or an artificial building imitating a cavern. Mithraea were dark and windowless, even if they were not actually in a subterranean space or in a natural...
of Heidelberg; and items dating from Heidelberg's period as the Electoral Palatinate residence.
Paintings
Works from the 15th to the 20th century, including portraits of historic Heidelberg figures (Frederick V
Frederick V, Elector Palatine
Frederick V was Elector Palatine , and, as Frederick I , King of Bohemia ....
, Elizabeth Charlotte, Perkeo
Perkeo of Heidelberg
Perkeo of Heidelberg was a notable court jester in 18th Century Heidelberg, Germany. He has since become an unofficial mascot of the city and region, as his name, story and image have been connected with a variety of festivals, traditional songs, cultural and scientific institutions, hotels,...
); religious works by Rogier van der Weyden and Lucas Cranach the Elder
Lucas Cranach the Elder
Lucas Cranach the Elder , was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving...
; 17th century Dutch still life
Still life
A still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which may be either natural or man-made...
s; 18th century rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
pictures; 19th century works by Carl Rottmann
Carl Rottmann
Carl Anton Joseph Rottmann was a German landscape painter and the most famous member of the Rottmann family of painters....
, Anselm Feuerbach
Anselm Feuerbach
Anselm Feuerbach was a German painter. He was the leading classicist painter of the German 19th-century school.-Biography:...
and Wilhelm Trübner
Wilhelm Trübner
Wilhelm Trübner was a German realist painter of the circle of Wilhelm Leibl.Trübner was born in Heidelberg and had early training as a goldsmith. In 1867 he met classicist painter Anselm Feuerbach who encouraged him to study painting, and he began studies in Karlsruhe under Fedor Dietz...
; and 20th century works by Alexander Kanoldt
Alexander Kanoldt
Alexander Kanoldt was a German magic realist painter and one of the artists of the New Objectivity.Kanoldt was born in Karlsruhe. His father was the painter Edmond Kanoldt, a late practitioner of the Nazarene style...
, Alexei Jawlensky and Max Beckmann
Max Beckmann
Max Beckmann was a German painter, draftsman, printmaker, sculptor, and writer. Although he is classified as an Expressionist artist, he rejected both the term and the movement...
.
Graphic arts
7,000 watercolours and drawings, and just under 13,000 printed graphics, from the Middle Ages to the 20th century, including works by Peter Anton von Verschaffelt
Peter Anton von Verschaffelt
Peter Anton von Verschaffelt was a Flemish sculptor and architect.Verschaffelt designed, among other things in Mannheim, the High Altar of the Jesuit church , the arsenal and the Bretzenheim Palace, as well as the church Wallfahrtskirche Mariä Himmelfahrt in Oggersheim .-Life and work:Verschaffelt...
, Carl Philipp Fohr, Georg Schrimpf
Georg Schrimpf
Georg Schrimpf , was a German painter and graphic artist. Along with Otto Dix, George Grosz and Christian Schad, Schrimpf is broadly acknowledged as a main representative of the art trend Neue Sachlichkeit , which developed in the 1920s as a counter-movement to Expressionism and Abstraction...
and Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall Art critic Robert Hughes referred to Chagall as "the quintessential Jewish artist of the twentieth century."According to art historian Michael J...
. Local artists are well represented, especially those from the Romantic period
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
and the 20th century. Many of the older works provide historic representations of the city, the castle
Heidelberg Castle
The Heidelberg Castle is a famous ruin in Germany and landmark of Heidelberg. The castle ruins are among the most important Renaissance structures north of the Alps....
, and the former Palatinate. Works on paper are sensitive to light and cannot be put on permanent display.
Applied arts
The applied arts collection includes porcelain, coins, medallions, furniture and glassware. Four of the rooms have been furnished to recreate the 18th and 19th centuries, featuring for example Frankenthal porcelain
Frankenthal Porcelain Factory
The Frankenthal Porcelain Factory was one of the greatest porcelain manufacturers of Germany and operated in Frankenthal in the Rhineland-Palatinate between 1755 and 1799.-History:...
and portraits of the prince-electors. There are also representative costumes of a Heidelberg family from around 1750 to 1930, and a household silver collection that once belonged to Countess Palatine Elisabeth Auguste (1721–1794).
Sculpture
Works from the 12th to the 20th century, including medieval gravestones from the former Augustine monastery, early baroque sculptures from houses in Heidelberg's old town, and sculptures of the Old Bridge, Prince-Elector Charles Theodore
Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria
Charles Theodore, Prince-Elector, Count Palatine and Duke of Bavaria reigned as Prince-Elector and Count palatine from 1742, as Duke of Jülich and Berg from 1742 and also as Prince-Elector and Duke of Bavaria from 1777, until his death...
and the goddess Minerva
Minerva
Minerva was the Roman goddess whom Romans from the 2nd century BC onwards equated with the Greek goddess Athena. She was the virgin goddess of poetry, medicine, wisdom, commerce, weaving, crafts, magic...
. Two of the most important pieces are Tilman Riemenschneider
Tilman Riemenschneider
Tilman Riemenschneider was a German sculptor and woodcarver active in Würzburg from 1483. He was one of the most prolific and versatile sculptors of the transition period between late Gothic and Renaissance, a master in stone and limewood.- Biography :Tilman Riemenschneider was born between 1459...
's Altar of the Apostles (1509) and Wilhelm Lehmbruck
Wilhelm Lehmbruck
Wilhelm Lehmbruck was a German sculptor.- Biography :Born in Duisburg, he studied sculpture arts at the academy of arts in Düsseldorf and contributed to an exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris. From 1910–1914 he lived in Paris, where he met Modigliani, Brancusi, and Archipenko...
's stone-cast Rückblickende.
Municipal history
Historical items, including the oldest stone relics from Heidelberg, a reconstructed kitchen from around 1600, models of the Old Bridge by the 18th century sculptor Linck, and a sequence of pictures by Ferdinand Kobell
Ferdinand Kobell
Ferdinand Kobell was a German painter and engraver.-Biography:He was studying at the University of Heidelberg when the Elector of Bavaria, admiring a landscape, aided him to devote his entire time to painting. He became the pupil of Peter Verschaffelt. He next studied art in Paris...
portraying the destruction of the bridge by floating ice in 1784. There is also a model of the medieval core of the old town.
Max Berk Textile Collection
Belonging to the museum's applied arts department, but displayed separately in a former evangelical church, this collection includes women's costumes going back to the second half of the 18th century, along with accessories, everyday items and decorative textile objects. There are also artefacts from India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Bali
Bali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
, Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and a collection of British and American patchwork quilt
Patchwork quilt
A patchwork quilt is a quilt in which the top layer consists of pieces of fabric sewn together to form a design. The quilting design does not necessarily follow the patchwork design, and the design of the quilting may play off the patchwork design....
s from the last 200 years.
Further reading
- Georg Poensgen, Das Kurpfälzische Museum in Heidelberg, Hamburg, 1965.
- Jörn Bahns: Heidelberg als Museumsstadt, in: Elmar Mittler (editor): Heidelberg. Geschichte und Gestalt, Universitätsverlag C. Winter, Heidelberg, 1996, ISBN 3-921524-46-6.