Long-overlooked murals in the Augsburg Cathedral are causing a stir among art historians and church officials alike after researchers revealed that the paintings are actually centuries old. A team of historical building researchers and restoration determined that the painting showing the life and death of John The Baptist is from the 11th century making it 1000 years old.
Located on the upper walls of the cathedral’s southern transept, the murals were hidden for centuries behind layers of overpaint until they were uncovered during a restoration effort in the 1930s. In 2009, the roof of the church underwent renovation, allowing researchers the opportunity to clean and study the frescoes for the first time, whereupon they learned that the pictures were likely painted shortly after the church was built.
Though heavily faded, conservators believe that one of the murals illustrates the execution of John the Baptist, the preacher thought to have baptised Jesus, while the other depicts his burial. A third painting portraying the saint’s birth may have been destroyed with the construction of a Gothic window in the 14th century.
The frescoes recall those located in the Church of Saint George on the southern German island of Reichenau, which are also believed to have been painted around the dawn of the 11th century. The island was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 in part because of the significance of its murals.