St. Jakobskirche (Church of St. Jacob)

Description:

• The choir of this Gothic church dates from 1336. In the west gallery is the Altar of the Holy Blood, a masterpiece by the famous Würzburg sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider (ca. 1460-1531). The work was executed between 1499 and 1505, to provide a worthy setting for the Reliquary of the Holy Blood. This relic, venerated in the Middle Ages, is contained in a rock-crystal capsule set in the reliquary cross (ca. 1270) in the center of the shrine. The scene on the altar beneath The Last Supper immediately makes a strong impact on the viewer. Christ is giving Judas the morsel of bread, marking him as the traitor. The apostle John is leaning on Christ's bosom. The altar wings show the entry of Christ into Jerusalem (on the left) and Christ praying in the Garden of Gethsemane (on the right). The altar casing is the work of Erhard Harschner, Rothenburg's master craftsman. The fine painted-glass windows in the choir date from the late-Gothic period. To the left is the tabernacle (ca. 1400), a place of sanctuary for condemned criminals.

• © Frommer's 2012