Pfarrkirche, Gothic parish church in Bad Königshofen im Grabfeld, Germany.
The Stadtpfarrkirche Mariä Himmelfahrt is a late Gothic pseudobasilica built from sandstone ashlar, about 50 metres long and 25 metres wide, with a three-aisled nave and a choir of three bays. Its 63-metre tower stands on the south side, square in plan, with six storeys, an octagonal gallery and bell storey, and two Welsche Hauben crowned by a cross added in 1693. The north portal carries a tympanum of the Annunciation, and the west portal one of the Last Judgement.
A wooden church existed here around 770, when Carloman transferred the royal "Peterskirche zu Chuningishaoba" to the Diocese of Würzburg. The present late-Gothic church was built from 1442 to 1496, with finishing work lasting until 1502; an inscription on the portal records the start. The 27 surviving mason's marks are attributed to the Strasbourg lodge, and coats of arms in the keystones name the Schott von Eichelsdorf, Hartung Truchseß zu Ebersberg and Marschalk von Ostheim families.
The church is the centre of the Grabfeldbrücke parish community in the Diocese of Würzburg and celebrates its patronal feast, the Assumption of Mary, on 15 August. A gilded figure of the Mother of God crowns the gable of the north portal, and the tympanum above it shows the Annunciation, with a vessel holding a lily sprout between the angel and Mary.
The church is centrally located in town and is easily accessible on foot. Visitors should note that access may sometimes be limited to services and events.
A spiral staircase beside the main entrance leads to the organ gallery: two interlocking helical flights, a rare double spiral attributed to the master builder Nikolaus von Schaffhausen. Look also for the 27 mason's marks, assigned to the Strasbourg lodge, and the coats of arms of the families who financed the building on the keystones.
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