Munich Die Stadtpfarrei St. Peter “Alter Peter”

St. Peter’s Church is the oldest parish church in Munich, dating back to 1294. A church has existed here since the 8th century, but it has been destroyed.

The church itself underwent several restorations due to bombings and fires. That is why today, architecture buffs will notice a mix of Baroque, Gothic, and Rococo styles. This church is a rebuild after the bombings of Munich during WWII. Many of the works of art had been relocated due to war and thus saved, due to the initiative and energy of the two pastors Max Stritter (1937-1949) and Max Zistl (1949-1983)

The interiors of St. Peter’s Church are nothing short of breathtaking. As you step inside, you’ll be greeted by a mix of Gothic and Baroque details, including stunning frescoes, ornate altars, and intricate woodwork.

The interior is dominated by the high altar to which Erasmus Grasser contributed the figure of Saint Peter. Among other masterpieces of all periods are five Gothic paintings by Jan Polack and several altars by Ignaz Günther. The ceiling fresco by Johann Baptist Zimmermann (1753–56) was restored in 1999–2000.

The Gothic epitaph for Balthasar Pötschner and his wife from red marble in the year 1505. Kneeling they are gathered around the chalice at the altar, a deacon with a book and a papal cross, a cleric whose hat identifies him as a cardinal, with the pope’s crown in his hands on the right, behind it a bishop with a mitre and a shepherd’s staff, in the middle the celebrant with tonsure without insignia Pope Gregory.

The pulpit

Chapels of the church

There are seven chapels on each side including the two tower chapels, then the high altar and finally the brewer’s altar on the gallery. The total number of altars thus amounts to a total of 16 altars in St. Peter.

On either side of the main altar are exquisite altars from the 17th/18th centuries. On the north side is the Altar of the Corporis-Christi-Broderty. It was designed by the Munich Rococo sculptor Ignaz Günther in 1757/58 and consists of marble and otherwise of stucco and wood. The four columns of the altarpiece created in 1644 by the Munich Baroque painter Johann Ulrich Loth shows the Last Supper in dramatic lighting.

On the south side is the Altar of the Maria-Hilf-Brutherschaft. When the original was destroyed in mid 17th century, the beer brewer’s widow Barbara Ostermayr donated a copy of the Passau Mother’s God for the altarpiece. It was a copy of the original by his son of Johann Carl Loth in 1653.

Side Chapels

Side chapels are secondary, smaller areas attached to the main body of a church, often designed for individual or private worship. These chapels enhance the architectural complexity of a church and serve specific functions, such as housing altars, relics, or providing spaces for different liturgical activities.

St. Martins altar (“Schrenk-Altar”) c. 1400

The year of creation of the Schrenk Altar is not handed down and the dating of the profitability has been controversial since its rediscovery in 1841. It is divided into three registers and at the top represents Jesus as the judge of the world, shows in the middle scenes of the end-time world judgment and at the bottom the crucifixion of Jesus with representations of St. Martin and other saints. Opposite him, the late Gothic Pötschner altar fairy tale from 1477 shows a triptych from the house chapel of the patrician family of the Duchal Councillor Balthasar Pötschner.

Joseph Chapel

The altarpiece shows the Mother of God with the plague saints Sebastian and Rochus and the city patron Saint Benno. The baroque statues arranged on the side from the 1st Half of the 18th century, the St. Theresia of Avila and the highly revered St. Joseph.

Chapel of St. Munditia – Liborius Altar

On the Liborius altar is the reliquary (whole body reliquary) of St. Munditia, a black baroque shrine with silver ornaments by Franz Keßler from 1677. St. Munditia, an early Christian martyr from Rome, whose memorial day is on the 17 November is considered the patron saint of single women. The Munditia shrine stands on the Liborius altar. Also in the chapel is – placed on the corner – the figurative representation of St. Walburga. She holds in her hands a bottle of Walburgis oil.

Anna-Kapelle Chapel

On the Predella there is a baroque carving group of the St. Anna Selbdritt by Balthasar Ableithner.

Tower Chapels

In the centre of the Baptismal Chapel stands the calyx-shaped red marble baptismal font of Hans Krumpper from the early 17th century. Josef Prötzner added in 1753, i.e. in the middle of the 18th century. century, the swinging wooden lid with the statue of John the Baptist. The oldest documents of 1284 showed a foundation by Konrad Wilbrecht of the Chapel Katharina. The figures of St. Catherine of Alexandria (c. 1765) and St. Margarete (c. 1765) are the highest, refined masterpieces of Rococo style from Ignaz Günther.

The Stations of the Cross

Spread around the pillars of the main eave are the paintings of the 14 Stations of the Cross. The 14 Stations of the Cross are a series of depictions of Jesus Christ’s journey to his crucifixion and burial. Just remember this is a working church, so please keep silent and do not disturb those that are worshipping as you are taking the photos.

Die Stadtpfarrei St. Peter | St Peter Parish
Rindermarkt 1, 80331 München
Tel : 089 21 02 37 76 0

Visited Aug 2023