Seven-brached candelabrum (Essen)

• Illustration — The candelabrum from a different perspective The seven-branched candelabrum in Essen Cathedral corresponds to the Jewish menorah and derives from the same Old Testament in the second book of Moses (Exodus 37:17-24). In early Christianity, the "seven" symbolized the unity of the divine and the earthly, as it united the "three" of the Trinity and the "four" of the earthly cardinal points. At the same time, the number seven stood for the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, while the lampstand stood for Christ himself. The candelabrum symbolizes at the same time the light of the world, which shines in all four directions of the wind represented by the bronze figures of the foot, in order to bring all people home to Christ at the end of all days. This reference to the final judgment over all people and the resurrection from the dead allows for the interpretation that Abbess Mathilde had it made as her memorial lampstand.

The original placement of the candelabrum is unknown. It is believed to have served as a memorial for Matilda and may have been located near her grave, which is thought to be in the crypt of the collegiate church. The location changed several times when the church was renovated: in the 14th century, when the sacred procedures of the services in the monastery were recorded in the liber ordinarius, it stood in the central nave near the crossing and thus close to the altar of the crossing, later it stood for a time in the choir room. It was transferred to its present location in the west wing in 1958 when space had to be made to accommodate the bishop's throne due to the remodeling of the choir. The candelabrum was considered to have a relatively modest material value, which made it less threatened of theft compared to other valuable artworks in the cathedral treasury. While the valuable gold and silver treasures such as the Golden Madonna or the Otto Mathilden Cross were taken away or hidden during the Thirty Years' War, during the First Coalition War, and during the Ruhr uprising, the seven-branched candelabrum was only dismantled and taken out of storage during the Second World War. Because of this, it also survived the destruction of Essen Cathedral by an air raid during the night of March 5-6, 1943. The candelabrum has been restored several times, most recently in 1987. It was previously photogrammetrically measured in all details so that today it would be possible to create an exact facsimile. As early as 1873, two duplicates of the Essen Seven-Branched candelabrum were made, one for the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the other for the Berlin museums.

• Illustration — The chancel of the Minster church in 1904, recognizable by the candelabrum in the chancel and the Altfrid tomb in the foreground Little is known about the historical use of the candelabrum. The liber ordinarius reflects the liturgical situation in Essen Abbey almost four hundred years after the candelabrum's creation. Although the manuscript is presumably based on older models, to what extent the scribes took over from these models is still unknown. The object is infrequently mentioned in the liber ordinarius. However, on the feast of Pentecost, it was the focus of the liturgy: the candles were lit, the scholars knelt around it, and sang a hymn to the risen Christ. In modern times, the candles of the Seven-Armed candelabrum are lit on Solemnity as well as on particularly noteworthy events such as the bishop's inaugurations.

Seven-brached candelabrum (Essen) is recorded as made of bronze. Associated with Germany. Recorded from 1000.