| In 1905, the
"Hagen Cremation Society" decided to build a crematorium, the
first in what was then Prussia. When Osthaus learned of these plans, he
hired Peter Behrens at his own expense to design a counter-proposal to the
project put forward by the society which envisaged a dilapidated ruin. It
is thanks to Osthaus's powers of persuasion that Behrens was able to
implement his concept by 1907, a strictly geometrical-stereometrical
construction modelled on the mediaeval Florentine church San Miniato al
Monte. The external walls of the austerely monumental Cubist religious
building, which is flanked by a tower-like chimney, were originally
covered with black and white marble. Unfortunately this elaborate
decoration was damaged by the weather and the façades had to be plastered
over in a plain grey. |
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The
entrance hall supported by six pillars leads into the solemn interior. The
eye is caught by the apse with its gold mosaic by Emil Rudolf Weiss
beneath which, raised on steps, the catafalque stands out against a
semi-circle of black marble pillars. Black and white geometrical
ornaments, composed of the basic elements of circle and square, lend
structure to the marble tiled floor and the sgraffito walls. The
surrounding organ gallery with its columned balustrade forms a horizontal
caesura. The light entering through the round side window gives the
polished surfaces a glistening sheen. A columbarium planned by Behrens was
never constructed; the side extension was added in 1984.
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| Black and white,
geometrical ornaments, composed of basic squares and circles, give
structure to the marble-tiled floor and walls. |
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To view the interior,
please call: 02331 207-3131
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