Trier Splinters

Already in 2007, 15 years ago, Red Baron visited Trier with the Museumsgesellschaft. The occasion was an exhibition about Constantine, the Roman emperor who gave Christianity the breakthrough in the Empire.

Actually, there were three exhibitions, one in the Museum am Dom, a second in the Stadtmuseum Simeonstift, and a third in the Rheinisches Landesmuseum. I gave a talk and wrote a report about the trip, which I had placed on the Internet. 

From the 10th to the 12th of November, the Museumsgesellschaft traveled again to Trier for an exhibition, this time about the fall of the Roman Empire again in three museums.

The Museum am Dom presented Im Zeichen des Kreuzes (In the Sign of the Cross), the role of Christianity. The Stadtmuseum showed Das Erbe Roms (The Legacy of Rome), highlighting the Empire's impact on art and history, while the Landesmuseum gave a global overview on Der Untergang des Römischen Reiches (The Fall* of the Roman Empire), i.e., of the disintegration of the Roman Empire in the first centuries AD.

*Fall is an exaggerated, misleading term

Before I report on the visit, I summarize some small items in splinters, as usual.

Trier was an important city when it became one of four imperial residences in the late Roman time. Later, in the Holy Roman Empire, it was the seat of the Archbishop of Trier, one of seven members of the electoral college choosing the German emperor.


Trier during the centuries. From the Porta Nigra to Karl Marx

The most famous ancient building of Trier is the Porta Nigra built in the year 170.

 

Karl Marx is the most famous man born in Trier, but it was not until his 200th birthday that a monument was erected for the son of the city. It was a gift of China the city accepted apparently half-heartedly. The statue stands secluded near Porta Nigra and away from the pedestrian flow of the city center.


The 11th in the 11th at 11 o'clock 11

Only a few people were in costumes.

On my way from Karl Marx's birthplace to the Constantine Basilica, I passed the Kornmarkt (grain market) at 11:05.

The Elferrat (11 councilors) on stage
or eleven costumed fools count down the time

So I was just in time to assist at the opening of the carnival season 2022/23, which according to an old tradition, starts on November 11 at 11:11.


The Constantine Basilica

The vast interior captivates every visitor.

The origins of this "basilica" date back to 305 to 311, after Trier was elevated to an imperial residence in 286.

The Roman Aula

The great hall is not a basilica by design. It is more aptly called an Aula (auditorium) and was used as a Thronsaal (throne room).

The "Basilica" in the Middle Ages

Church services were not held there either because a three-aisled basilica was already built next door between 310 and 320 (see below).

The Palastaula (palace auditorium) suffered heavy damage during the last world war.

 

After the war, the imposing building was rebuilt in a simple style. Again it serves as a place of worship for the Protestant congregation, 

Our bus did not return to Freiburg until noon on Saturday, 12. So Red Baron used the morning to explore the building complex of the Trier Cathedral.

Ausonius

On my way there, I passed a booth where students from Ausonius Elementary School were selling cakes. Who is this Ausonius?

This time it was not a saint but a Roman scholar who originated from Bordeaux. Emperor Valentinian ordered him to Trier in 364 to teach his son, the future emperor Gratian.

The story is somewhat reminiscent of Goethe, whom Princess Amalia summoned to the court of Weimar to educate her son.


The Trier Cathedral

Christmas market installations blocked
the view of the Romanesque facade

The three-nave basilica's facade still presents itself in its original form.

The interior of the church has changed over the centuries.

The cloister is impressive just because of its sheer size.

Illustrated explanations hang there about the cathedral's history, including the description of the Heiliger Rock (Seamless robe of Jesus).

During Red Baron's first visit to Trier, this garment was displayed at the cathedral's high altar.

Church of Our Lady

Next door to the cathedral is the impressive Liebfrauenkirche (Church of Our Lady).

At the entrance, the usual juxtapositions of Adam and Eve, Peter with his fishing net and John the Evangelist with a snake in the chalice, the triumphant Church, and the blindfolded Synagogue, i.e., Jews don't "see" Christ as the Messiah.

A Pieta in the entrance hall.


BMW Isetta

On my way back to the hotel, I saw a BMW Isetta. In the vernacular, this vehicle was called elephant foot. BMW produced the Isetta in the fifties of the last century.

Burgeramt

The words Burger and Bürger become interchangeable in German. Remember the delicious Freiburgers offered downtown Freiburg. In Trier,  Red Baron came across a fast-food restaurant named Burgeramt. In Freiburg, the administrative office for citizens is called Bürgeramt.

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