Sculpture

As early as 1869, the city council had decided to transfer the "collection of tools and carvings from local monasteries and churches", "the medieval sandstone sculptures" and "the stained glass and wood carvings" from the collections of the city library to the Historical Museum to be established. This collection was later supplemented by purchases or donations of sacred and secular works. In addition, there were architectural sculptures from demolished houses or houses destroyed in the Second World War from the Middle Ages to the 19th century, finds from archaeological excavations in the city and the surrounding area and sculptures transferred by the cathedral building office.

Architectural change in Frankfurt - building decoration from the Middle Ages to modern times

During the redevelopment of the city center in the 19th and early 20th centuries, a considerable part of the early modern building fabric was demolished. Fortunately, objects with special testimonial value were recovered by authorities and private individuals and handed over to the HMF. The collection includes fully sculpted sculptures and sculpted architectural fragments from Frankfurt churches and secular buildings from the 12th century onwards. These include Madonnas and figures of saints, inscription stones, gravestones, coat of arms stones, house marks and craftsmen's marks. The Middle Rhine Man of Sorrows (around 1370), the epitaph of the priest Johannes Lupi (1468) and the crucifixion group by Hans Backoffen from St. Peter's Churchyard (1507/1508), as well as vault keystones from St. Peter's Church, the Heiliggeistkirche and the Dreikönigskirche deserve special mention. After the demolition of St. Peter's Church in 1895, numerous tombs of Frankfurt citizens were transferred to the HMF's depot.

The secular architecture of 17th and 18th century Frankfurt is represented by the portal group of the former Palais Thurn und Taxis by Paul Egell (1734/1735), the façade sculptures of the Old Stock Exchange, as well as elaborately designed corbels and sculpted lintels. This collection is supplemented by house signs from the 15th to 18th centuries. Sculptures from the numerous Frankfurt gardens can also be found in the HMF collection, such as 18th century mythological figures from Holzmann's Garden. Fragments of numerous Frankfurt fountains, such as the Justitia, Minerva, Bieber, Ritter and Taubenbrunnen fountains, are of particular historical significance. Frankfurt's coat of arms can be found on many depictions of building components from the 16th to 18th centuries.

Figures and portraits

In the first decades of its existence, the Historisches Museum Frankfurt also pursued regional arts and crafts collecting interests and therefore acquired sculptures of non-Frankfurt provenance, such as two attributed female saints. Finally, the HMF naturally collects portrait busts of Frankfurt personalities from public buildings, private collections or tombs.

Literature

The Peterskirchhof. A historical gem in the city center of Frankfurt.
By Björn Wissenbach, Historical-Archaeological Society, Frankfurt a.M. 2004

Frankfurt Sculptures in the Historical Museum Frankfurt am Main.
By Ludwig Baron Döry and Bernward Deneke, Frankfurt a.M. 1959

The stone monuments of the Historical Museum Frankfurt am Main.
By Barbara Bott and Ludwig Baron Döry, Frankfurt a.M. 1956