The case of the Triegel-Cranach altar in Naumburg Cathedral Part 3 – Science proofs historical background!
In the meantime, two art historians were able to prove through archival work using the preserved account books of the Naumburg cathedral chapter that the altar of the Virgin Mary by Cranach the Younger was indeed planned for the Naumburg west choir in 1520 and was set up there, where it was until the anti-Marian iconoclasm on 9 November 1541, in which the central section of the altarpiece and other representations of the Virgin Mary fell victim. This, too, could be verified by sources.
This brings the Charter of Venice adopted by ICOMOS into play, which advocates that works should remain in their original place of installation or be repatriated.
In the meantime, UNESCO allowed the altar to be displayed in the west choir of Naumburg Cathedral until the summer of 2005. What will happen then has still not been clarified!
This case has clearly shown that the interdisciplinary competence of the advisory institution ICOMOS is not sufficient in complex situations: "Its mission is to promote the conservation, protection, use and enhancement of monuments, building complexes and sites." In this case, the conservation of the artistic intention of the sculpture group overrode all other tasks that rightly appear in the ICOMOS mission statement.
The ICOMOS decision also went against the interests of the UNESCO organisation ICOM-CC, because repeated erection and dismantling of large-scale Renaissance paintings on wooden panels are a considerable risk for the paintings.
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The Glasbau Hahn display cases offer shock-absorbing storage for the panels, which significantly reduces this risk, and it was also helpful that a structured assembly and disassembly technique was already thought of and implemented in the project for later conservation studies.
We wish the Triegel-Cranach Mary Altar the success in the west choir of Naumburg Cathedral that it deserves as an artistic dialogue between Renaissance and contemporary religious painting in a contemporary ecumenical environment
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