Rosheim
Église Saints-Pierre-et-Paul
Presentation
The current church was built in local yellow sandstone during the second third of the 12th century. Saints-Pierre-et-Paul is the most homogenous example of Romanesque-Alsatian art at its most mature, with a remarkable decorative repertoire on the outside, consisting of twisted columns, Lombardy bands, chequered cornices, friezes with palmettes and interlacings, and sculptures in the round. Inside, the rib-vaulted bays are punctuated by alternating strong columns and cross-shaped pillars. The most astonishing capital is the second in the north row, decorated with a crown of 21 different happy faces.
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This church boasts a wealth of sculpted decoration that is unusual in Alsace. Boldness and influences combine to create a sum total of Rhenish art from the middle of the 12th century.
Pillars: Monolithic columns alternate with cruciform pillars, creating an alternation of supports in accordance with Rhenish practice. The oldest surviving evidence of the use of this principle in Alsace is at Surbourg (11th century).
The building is covered with rib vaults in the nave and choir bay, and cross vaults in the aisles.
One of the cubic capitals features a remarkable astragal composed of 21 different haloed heads. This is the work of a physiognomist sculptor who was the first in Alsace to create human heads with a natural, lively expression. In the Dorlisheim church, the plant and figurative decoration was sculpted by an artist who had completed his apprenticeship in Rosheim.
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