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France
Colmar
Dominican priory (1260) and church (1291).

A brief description.

The Dominicans built their priory in Colmar in 1260 with a 14th century cloister, dedicated yo Saint Catharine of Alexandria. It now houses the Municipal Library (manuscripts of 8th-15th century, incunabula).

The foundation stone of the church was laid in the presence of the Roman King Rudolf I of Habsburg (1 May 1218-5 July 1291, King of the Romans, crowned in Aachen Cathedral on 24 October 1273) in 1283. The nave of the church was completed in 1291; the choir in the 14th century. This church is a fine example of the Early Gothic architecture of the Rhineland.

The interior, its roof supported on extraordinarily slender pillars, contains fine stained glass (14th-15th century) and altars from Marbach Abbey, near Eguisheim.

The famous polyptychon.

 Since1480, the church possessed a polyptychon, painted by Martin Schongauer (c. 1448 – 2 February 1491). He was the most important German printmaker before Albrecht Dürer. As a painter, Schongauer was a follower of the Flemish Rogier van der Weyden, and his rare existing pictures closely resemble, both in splendour of colour and exquisite minuteness of execution, the best works of contemporary art in Flanders.

With his apprentices, Schongauer painted between 1470-1480 a polyptychon with panels about the passion of Christ (16) and events from the life of the Blessed Virgin (8) for the high altar the Dominican church.  
Eleven panels of this polyptychon are preserved in the Museum Unterlinden, the former monastery of Dominican nuns in Colmar.

Source: Wikipedia

Philately

Eleven panels of the polyptychon by Martin Schongauer are preserved
in the former Dominican nun's monastery Unterlinden in  Colmar.

Published on stamps:

Nativity.

Republic Dahomey 1974, Mi 614, Sc C 252.

Adoration of the Kings.

Republic Mali 1974, Mi 466, Sc C 233. 

Jesus and Mary Magdalen: noli me tangere.

Republic Burundi 1969, Mi 486, Sc 282.

Die Schongauer-Madonna; Virgin in Rose Arbor. 

For many years, the Saint Martin's Münster in Colmar, housed the famous painting by Martin Schongauer 'Die Madonna im Rosenhag' (1473).  Virgin in Rose Arbor.
The original painting was rectangular and of unusual length (250x165 cm). On unknown date, the painting was reduced to the format of 200x115 cm.

Preparing the 5th centenary of this master piece, it was stolen in the night of 10 to 11 January 1972.  On 4 June 1973, it was found again undamaged in Lyon. It is presented in the choir of the former Dominican church in Colmar since 8 June 1973.

                                                          Republic Dahomey 1991, Mi 615, Sc C 253.

Germany 1991, Mi 580, Sc B 722.

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