- Sensational find: 12th-century stone statue
A presumably 900-year-old, very rare so-called image stone has been discovered during construction work on a house in Klotzow near Anklam (district of Vorpommern-Greifswald). The hewn granite, one meter high, 60 centimeters wide, and 40 centimeters deep, shows an engraved human figure holding a cross in front of its belly. Minister of Culture Bettina Martin (SPD) spoke of a sensation when presenting the find in Schwerin. The region was Christianized 900 years ago - it is therefore a very early Christian representation.
State archaeologist Detlef Jantzen said that the person depicted is likely a clerical dignitary, possibly Bishop Otto of Bamberg (around 1060-1139), the missionary of Pomerania. A special exhibition in Wolgast currently commemorates him.
The cross hangs on a kind of scarf around the man's neck - possibly a pallium, which the popes grant to high-ranking church dignitaries. Otto of Bamberg received a pallium in the year 1111, said Jantzen.
Image stones are very rare, according to the state archaeologist. "We had five in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, two in Altenkirchen and Bergen on Rügen, two in Wolgast and one in Grüttow near Stolpe on the Peene, the Wartislaw stone," he said. Further finds are known from Ermland and Masuria in Poland - a total of 20 pieces. The stone from Klotzow weighs half a ton, according to the reports.
Used as a doorstep
The engraved stone lay on its back, with the image facing up and horizontally in the earth immediately next to the house wall, reported the finder and owner of the house in Klotzow, Peter Wittenberg. It may have been used as a step at some point. The door to it may have been bricked up at some point. There were only 10 to 20 centimeters of earth above the stone. The house, Wittenberg suspects, was built in the 18th century and later renovated.
Jantzen suspects that the stone was set up as a memorial stone - it is still unclear where. Archaeologists want to examine Klotzow more closely after the discovery three weeks ago. There are indications that there was once a church or chapel in the village and also a ferry point to cross the Peene River to the island of Usedom.
A 3D model of the stone is to be created. Then one can also recognize the drawing more precisely, said Jantzen. So far, it is unclear what the depicted man is holding in his right hand - a banner or a drinking horn, that cannot be made out.
Was Otto of Bamberg in Klotzow?
The later sainted Otto of Bamberg undertook two missionary journeys to Pomerania, in 1124 and 1128. On the second journey, he brought Christianity to today's Vorpommern. He was also on Usedom, as historical writings show. He may have crossed over from Klotzow. But that is pure speculation at this point, said Jantzen.
"Everyone in the village is excited," reported Wittenberg about the mood after the discovery. The village has only a few dozen inhabitants. Now it is something special. Jantzen would like to put the image stone back up in Klotzow. He showed an example from Denmark of how that could look: There, important engraved stones are housed in a glass-steel construction and illuminated so that the engravings are clearly visible.
The person depicted on the image stone is believed to be Bishop Otto of Bamberg, a missionary in Pomerania around 1060-1139. Detlef Jantzen suggested that the cross around the man's neck might be a pallium, a religious garment granted to high-ranking church dignitaries, which Otto of Bamberg received in 1111.
