Varnenum - Gallo-Roman cult site
In the immediate vicinity of Kornelimünster, on the road to Breinig, the remains of important temples from Roman times have been uncovered and investigated since 1907. The origin of these remarkable excavations is dated to the time around the birth of Christ. The name Varnenum goes back to the dedicatory inscription on a bronze plaque found here. Remains of Roman roads are suspected in the surrounding area.
Monastery
Andreas Herrmann
The former imperial abbey
The former imperial abbey is now a successor building to the Benedictine monastery founded in 814, built in 1721. When Napoleon dissolved the abbey in the course of secularization in 1802, it was successively turned into a factory, a teachers' seminary and a local history museum. Since 1976, the former imperial abbey has housed a permanent exhibition of contemporary art from NRW, whose unusual presentation in the late baroque ambience of the abbey makes a visit a special experience.
Kunsthaus NRW Kornelimünster
With its exhibition program, the Kunsthaus NRW Kornelimünster offers an insight into the present and future of the art scene in North Rhine-Westphalia. Temporary exhibitions show current developments in art. The collection presentation provides an overview of the state's art history with works by artists such as Karl Otto Götz, Emil Schumacher, Ernst Wilhelm Nay, Günther Uecker, Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Katharina Sieverding, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff, Gregor Schneider, Björn Dahlem, Gerd and Uwe Tobias, Gereon Krebber and Erika Hock.
The state of North Rhine-Westphalia has been supporting young artists by purchasing works of art since 1948. The resulting collection of over 3800 works is kept and exhibited in the building of the old imperial abbey of Aachen-Kornelimünster. Prince Abbot Alfons von Suys had the abbey converted into a magnificent baroque palace from 1719. The abbot's excellently preserved living quarters and the imperial rooms are richly decorated with paintings by Belgian painters and stucco work by Italian artists.
You can find more information on the Kunsthaus NRW website.
Abbey garden
When the monastery was dissolved under Napoleon, the immunity wall that surrounded the monastery garden was demolished. Its course can still be recognized today by the bluestone slabs embedded in the paving. With the demolition of the wall, the former market square in the historic center of Kornelimünster was extended to include parts of the monastery garden.Church family
In the early Middle Ages, a monastery was usually surrounded by several smaller church buildings, the so-called church family. The mountain church of St. Stephen, St. Anthony's Chapel, St. Gangolf's Chapel and St. Klaus' Chapel still stand around the former Benedictine abbey of Kornelimünster today.
Churches
City of Aachen / Andreas Herrmann
Provost Church of St. Cornelius
The Propsteikirche - the former abbey church and current parish church of Kornelimünster - is one of the most important buildings of Rhenish architecture. The building, which at first glance looks like a five-nave Gothic church, is actually the result of more than 1000 years of building history. It was founded in 814-817 AD and was consecrated in the presence of Louis the Pious. Until the dissolution of the monastery in 1802, the provost church was a monastery and pilgrimage church.
The three biblical shrines
In the provost's church, the apron, the sweat cloth and the burial shroud of Christ are kept, which, according to tradition, are closely linked to the Passion of Christ. These so-called three biblical shrines are shown to the faithful every seven years.Precious relics
-the reliquary of the skull of the holy Pope and martyr Cornelius († 253)
-sculptures of Saints Cornelius and Cyprianus in the organ loft.
-the Cornelius horn, a buffalo horn made of silver and dating from the 10th century. Pilgrims could drink consecrated water from it.Choir stalls
The choir stalls of the Kornelimünster provost church are among the few surviving early Gothic choir stalls in the Rhineland. It dates from 1325 and, following its restoration and re-erection, is a visible reminder of the great times in the almost thousand-year history of the former Benedictine abbey.Organ
The organ, designed by the Aachen architect J. J. Couven, is one of the most beautiful works of its kind in the Rhineland.
Other important sights in the interior of the church include the Cornelius statue from 1460, the Anna altar from 1501 and the Baroque high altar, which J. J. Couven redesigned in the Rococo style around 1750.St. Stephen's Mountain Church
The mountain church of St. Stephen is located on a hill above the former abbey church. Its origins date back to around 1000 A.D. The old cemetery around the church offers a view over Kornelimünster and the surrounding area. Until the dissolution of the monastery, it was the parish church for the villages belonging to the so-called "Münsterländchen". Today it is also used for art exhibitions and concerts.
Chapels
Former chapel of St. Gangolf
The former chapel, which has been used for secular purposes since the 19th century, is a Gothic quarry stone building from the 15th/16th century, which was erected on the foundations of a Romanesque predecessor building. St. Gangolf am Schulberg 18 is now used as a youth club.
Antonius Chapel
The chapel on the southern edge of the village on Breiniger Straße was first mentioned in documents in 1718. After an earthquake, Abbot Ludwig von Sickingen built a new building in the shape of a triangle. Further alterations and restorations resulted in the current shape.
Klauser Chapel
In the Klauserwäldchen nature reserve, a path with seven wayside shrines (clay reliefs depicting the seven stations of the Passion of Mary) leads to the former hermitage with the "Maria im Schnee" chapel dating from 1658. Next to the chapel are the remains of the columns of a summer pavilion that a stepdaughter of Napoleon wanted to have built there in 1812. There is also an obelisk commemorating the donation of the Klauserwäldchen to the parish of Kornelimünster by Frederick William III of Prussia in 1819.
Cornelian octave
In the Middle Ages, the relic treasures and veneration of Cornelius led to the tradition of the Korneli Octave and the pilgrimages to the shrine, which are still maintained by the Kornelimünster parish today. Every year in September, the Korneli Octave takes place in Kornelimünster, which is still attended by thousands of pilgrims - mainly from the Münsterland region. The Korneli Octave begins with the feast of the "Exaltation of the Cross" and is celebrated for a week with many masses and pilgrimage devotions and a final procession of relics.
The Jewish cemetery
The Kornelimünster Jewish cemetery is located on Schildchenweg opposite the Christian cemetery. The site is surrounded by a wall and is not open to the public. There are no documents about its origins. If one deduces the opening date from the oldest gravesite, it must have been around 1852. However, as there was already a Jewish community in Kornelimünster in the 17th century, there must have been a burial site even earlier. According to Jewish custom, the construction of a burial ground is more important than the building of a synagogue. Evidence of a Jewish burial site in Kornelimünster has been found. During the Nazi era, numerous gravestones were damaged and inscriptions destroyed and removed. The last burial took place in 1935.
Historic town center
Largely spared from the great wars, Kornelimünster's townscape is still characterized by 17th and 18th century town houses. The historic town center from the Middle Ages has been almost completely preserved. The history of secular architecture in the Aachen region can nowhere be experienced in such a condensed form as in Kornelimünster. Many of these houses around Korneliusmarkt and Benediktusplatz are listed buildings and are subject to the protection of art monuments in accordance with Article 18 of the state constitution. According to the State Conservator in Bonn, Kornelimünster has one of the most historically significant townscapes in the Rhineland and there is a public interest in its preservation.
Walheim leisure area
The leisure park in Walheim offers a beautiful area with lots of play options. Lots of play equipment: a skating rink, a barbecue hut (can be hired), sunbathing and play area, mini golf, kiosk. At the end of Walheim in the direction of Roetgen, turn left at the Rewe supermarket.
Address: Schleidener Str. 159, 52076 Aachen