Dr. Vera Henkelmann

Core research areas

Art of the Middle Ages
- Lighting devices and the use of light
- Sacred furnishings (especially goldsmithing and paraments)
- Jewelry
- Object and image cultures of the hunt

Methods and research questions
- Object studies
- Object biographies
- Senses, sensory experience and body perception
- Memoria
- Medieval reception

Studies

Studied Art History at the Rheinische Friedrich- Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
Minor subjects: Pre- and Early History and Medieval and Modern History
Degree with the Magister Artium

Doctorate (Dr. phil.) at the Technical University of Dortmund (dissertation topic: Late Gothic Marian candlesticks. Forms, functions, meanings)
Dissertation prize from the Technical University of Dortmund

Work as a freelance researcher; among other things:
since 2018 regular freelance lecturer at the Caspar David Friedrich Institute - Chair of Art History, University of Greifswald

since 2020 Associate Fellow at the Max Weber College for Cultural and Social Science Studies, University of Erfurt

2020-2021 as a fellow of the University of Erfurt at the Chair of Liturgical Studies

2023 as a fellow in the research group "Religion and Urbanity" [FOR 2779]

since 2023 Member of the DFG network "Cultural History of Hunting/Interdisciplinary Network for a Handbook on the Cultural History of Hunting"

since 2024 Associate Fellow at the Research Center for Comparative History of Religious Orders, TU Dresden

cf. also https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4027-2935
* indicates publications with peer review

Monographs
Late Gothic Marian candlesticks. Forms, functions, meanings. Regensburg 2014 (Eikoniká. Art scientific contributions 4). [Dissertation thesis]
*Excerpts:
http://www.schnell-und-steiner.de/artikel_7846.ahtml (Link: "Click into the book ") *Reviews:
Aleš Mudra. In: Studia mediaevalia Bohemica 8 (2016), pp. 195-196.
[http://cms.flu.cas.cz/media/com_form2content/documents/c10/a1511/f209/SMB_16_195-196.pdf]
Uwe Albrecht. In: Journal für Kunstgeschichte 19 (2015), pp. 125-126.[https://doi.org/10.11588/jfk.2015.2.57966]
Dagmar Preising. In: Kunstchronik 68.8 (2015), pp. 421-426.

Articles in anthologies and journals
In print/by the editors
(44) The use of artificial light in medieval churches of Old Livonia - on the relationship between light, ritual, furnishings and architecture. In: Artificial light in medieval churches between Byzantium and the West. Edited by Vladimir Ivanovici, Alice Isabella Sullivan. Leiden (2024) [in the editorial office].

(43) Das Erfurter Marienstift und das Licht: Eine Rekonstruktion künstlicher Beleuchtung in und an der mittelalterlichen Stifts- und Pfarrkirche St. Marien. In: Mediaevistik: international journal for interdisciplinary medieval research [in the editorial office].

(42) The medieval textiles from Preetz Abbey. In: Preetz Monastery in the Middle Ages. Edited by Klaus Gereon Beuckers, Oliver Auge. Kiel (Forschungen zu Kloster und Stift Preetz 3) [in the editorial office].

(41) Candles of death and the death of the Virgin Mary as a model of the ideal death on the threshold of the Early Modern Era. In: The moment of death in early modern Europe, c. 1450-1800. Contested ideals, controversial spaces, conspicuous objects. Edited by Benedikt Brunner, Martin Christ (Interdisciplinary studies in early modern culture) [in the editorial office].

(40) Aniane and Fulda: Seven-branched Candelabra from the Carolingian Period and their Context. In: The Menorah and the Seven-branched Candelabrum. Jewish and Christian Manifestations in the Medieval and Early Modern Periods. Edited by Maria Streicher, Andrea Worm. Berlin, Boston (Andere Ästhetik - Studien) [in the editorial office].

(39) The Marian chandeliers of St. Mary's Church in Gdansk. Manifestations of late medieval Marian veneration. In: The St. Mary's Church in Gdansk. The building and its furnishings in a European context. Edited by Gerhard Weilandt, Tomasz Torbus [in the editorial office].

(38) The Marian chandelier in the St. Michael's Chapel of St. Valentinus Kiedrich. Documentation and contextualization. In: Final documentation of the restoration of the church ensemble St. Valentinus Kiedrich. Edited by Christine Kenner (Arbeitshefte des Landesamtes für Denkmalpflege Hessen) [in the editorial office].

2024
(37) Candlestick inscriptions in the context of medieval mass liturgy. Suggestion and presence of sacrality in the church interior and their memorial implications. In: Sacred images of writing. On the iconic presence of writing in the medieval church space. Edited by Tobias Frese, Lisa Horstmann, Franziska Wenig. Berlin 2024 (Materiale Textkulturen 42), pp. 103-131. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111304496-005

2023
*(36) Women as witnesses: Picturing gender and spiritual identity in a twelfth-century embroidered fragment from Northern Germany. In: Women and monastic reform in the medieval West, c. 1000-1500. Debating identities, creating communities. Edited by Julie Hotchin, Jirki Thibaut. Woodbridge 2023 (Studies in the history of medieval religion 54), pp. 98-131 [tandem contribution with Julie Hotchin]. //https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv319wpqj.11

(35) Late medieval Mariana of the Meuse region. In: Aachener Kunstblätter 68.2020-2022 (2023), pp. 22-46.

(34) The Blessed Sacrament shining in light: The case of windowed niches in medieval Livonian churches. In: Natural light in medieval churches. Edited by Vladimir Ivanovici, Alice Isabella Sullivan. Leiden 2023 (East Central and Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages 88), pp. 90-127. // https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004527980_006

2022
(33) The seven-branched candlestick by Hans Apengeter in St. Mary's Church in Kolberg. A monument to Hans Apengeter's and Gottfried von Wida's striving for representation and commemoration in equal measure. In: Hans Apengeter. North German bronze casting of the 14th century in context. Edited by Klaus Gereon Beuckers, Jochen Hermann Vennebusch. Regensburg 2022 (Opera Borealia. Beiträge zur norddeutschen Kunst des Mittelalters und der Frühen Neuzeit 1), pp. 27-50.
*Review:
Uwe Albrecht. In: Journal für Kunstgeschichte 27 (2023), pp. 13-21, here pp. 14f.

2021
(32) In eternal remembrance - inscriptions on selected funeral cloths and funeral carpets of the late Middle Ages. In: On fabric and stone. Intersections of textile art and epigraphy. Edited by Tanja Kohwagner-Nikolai, Bernd Päffgen, Christine Steininger. Wiesbaden 2021, pp. 305-325.

2020
(31) The Erfurt bronze lamp: Jewish or Christian? In: Ritual objects in ritual contexts. Edited by Maria Stürzebecher, Claudia D. Bergmann. Jena 2020 (Erfurt writings on Jewish history 6), pp. 42-51.

(30) The late medieval light display at St. Lawrence in Nuremberg. In: Mitteilungen des Vereins für Geschichte der Stadt Nürnberg 107 (2020), pp. 97-134.

*(29) The falcon and its significance in depictions of courtly love on late medieval mirror cases (14th century) from western European workshops. In: Raptor on the fist - falconry, its imagery and similar motifs throughout the millennia on a global scale. Vol. 2. ed. by Oliver Grimm, Karl-Heinz Gersmann, Anne-Lise Tropato. Kiel 2020 (Advanced studies on the archaeology and history of hunting 2), pp. 763-796.

2019
(28) The so-called Wolfram candlestick in Erfurt in the light and candlestick tradition of the Christian Middle Ages. In: The Wolfram chandelier in Erfurt Cathedral. A Romanesque work of art and its surroundings. Edited by Falko Bornschein, Karl Heinemeyer, Maria Stürzebecher. Erfurt 2019 (Schriften des Vereins für die Geschichte und Altertumskunde von Erfurt 11), pp. 177-214.

*(27) Artificial light in the context of medieval prayer practice. In: Mediality and the practice of prayer. Edited by Mirko Breitenstein, Christian Schmidt. Berlin 2019 (The Middle Ages. Perspectives on medieval research. Journal of the Association of Medievalists 24.2 (2019)), pp. 431-457. // https://doi.org/10.1515/mial-2019-0045

(26) The Marienleuchter in the St. Johanniskirche in Lüneburg. In: Lüneburg. Sacred topography of a city. Edited by Peter Knüvener, Esther Meier. Ilmtal-Weinstraße 2019 (Ars ecclesia. Art on site 5), pp. 105-117.

(25) Light at the portal - lighting at church portals and doors in the Middle Ages. In: The church portal in the Middle Ages. Edited by Stephan Albrecht, Stefan Breitling, Rainer Drewello. Petersberg 2019, pp. 178-189.

2018
(24) Artificial light in the medieval sacred space. A first approach. In: Liturgical Yearbook 68.3 (2018), pp. 173-196.

*(23) Consecration candles and angel candlesticks of the late Middle Ages. Stagings of light in the context of consecration. In: Anzeiger des Germanischen Nationalmuseums 2016 (2018), pp. 99-118.

(22) The staging of St. Mary's Church in Aachen with artificial light in the Middle Ages. In: Aachener Kunstblätter 66, 2014/2017 (2018), pp. 13-44.

(21) The evidential value of falconry depictions in book illuminations, on seals, and on tapestries in Middle Europe. In: Raptor and human - falconry and bird symbolism throughout the millennia on a global scale. Edited by Karl-Heinz Gersmann, Oliver Grimm. Kiel 2018 (Advanced studies on the archaeology and history of hunting 1.1), pp. 449-466.

(20) The Marienleuchter in St. Lorenz Nuremberg. In: 500 years of the angel's greeting in St. Lawrence Nuremberg. Lindenberg 2018, pp. 45-62.

(19) Genesis and function of the Doberan Marian candlestick - preservation of tradition and multifunctionality of a late Gothic Marian candlestick. In: The decoration of Doberan Minster - art in context. Edited by Gerhard Weilandt, Kaja von Cossart. Petersberg 2018 (Edition Mare Balticum 2), pp. 348-361.

(18) The lighting system of brotherhoods and guilds in the late Middle Ages - design and function as reflected in traditional material culture and written tradition. In: Material Culture. Presence and visibility of artists, guilds and brotherhoods in the pre-modern period. Edited by Andreas Tacke, Birgit Ulrike Münch, Wolfgang Augustyn. Petersberg 2018 (Artifex. Sources and Studies on the Social History of Artists), pp. 331-358.

2017
(17) The stained glass in the Essen Cathedral of St. Cosmas and Damian. In: Masterpieces of 20th century stained glass in the Rhineland. Vol. 2. ed. by Iris Nestler. Mönchengladbach 2017, pp. 121-136.

(16) The Vreden Marian chandelier. In: Saint Felicitas Vreden. Veneration. Church. Church treasure. Edited by Volker Tschuschke, Julia von Ditfurth. Vreden 2017 (Contributions of the Vreden local history association to regional and folklore studies 97), pp. 325-366.

(15) Marienleuchter of the Rhineland. In: Rheinische Heimatpflege 54.2 (2017), pp. 95-116.

2016
(14) The furnishings of St. Johann in Dortmund. Multimedia proclamation of faith and Marian devotion of the Dortmund Dominicans in the late Middle Ages. In: The German Dominicans and Dominican Sisters in the Middle Ages. Edited by Sabine von Heusinger, Elias H. Füllenbach, Walter Senner, Klaus-Bernward Springer. Berlin 2016 (Quellen und Forschungen zur Geschichte des Dominikanerordens N.F. 21), pp. 335-362. // https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110482386-020

2015
(13) The Kempen "beldt vnser lyuer frouwen inder sonnen" and the Marian candlesticks of the late Middle Ages. In: Heimatbuch Kreis Viersen 67 (2016), pp. 279-294.

(12) The Marienleuchter in St. Lambertus Erkelenz, chapter "Eine kunsthistorische Betrachtung und Würdigung". In: Yearbook of Rhenish Monument Preservation 45 (2015), pp. 134-141.

2013
*(10) A hunting scene on a late medieval linen embroidery from a convent in Preetz (northern Germany) - an art-historical perspective. In: Hunting in northern Europe until 1500 AD - old traditions and regional developments, continental sources and continental influences. Edited by Oliver Grimm, Ulrich Schmölcke. Neumünster 2013 (Schriften des Archäologischen Landesmuseums. Ergänzungsreihe 7), pp. 531-542.

(9) A recasting of the Halberstadt Disko and the replicas of historical art objects in 19th century iron art casting. In: Harz-Zeitschrift 65 (2013), pp. 147-158.

2011
(8) The Madonna in Lienzingen and the depiction of Maria Apocalyptica in wall paintings of the late Middle Ages. In: Die mittelalterlichen Wandmalereien zwischen Rhein, Neckar und Enz. Edited by Klaus Gereon Beuckers. Ubstadt-Weiher 2011, pp. 281-292.

2010
(7) The double Madonna from Volkhardinghausen - fragment of a late Gothic Marian chandelier ensemble. In: New research on ancient art. On the centenary of the LWL-Landesmuseum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichte in Münster (1908-2008) and its medieval collection. Edited by Petra Marx. Münster 2010 (Westfalen 85/86 (2007/2008)), pp. 323-343.

(6) A recasting of the Halberstadt Disko in the Eisen Kunst Guss Museum Büdelsdorf and the reception of historical models in 19th century iron art casting. In: Büdelsdorfer Hefte 6 (2010), pp. 9-60.

2007
(5) The seven-armed candlestick of Essen Minster and the memoria of Abbess Mathilde. "Abbess Mathilde ordered me to be made and consecrated me to Christ". In: "... how the gold shines in the eyes". Treasures from the Essen convent. Edited by Birgitta Falk, Thomas Schilp, Michael Schlagheck. Essen 2007 (Essener Forschungen zum Frauenstift 5), pp. 151-167.

2006
(4) The Marienleuchter of the Dortmund Dominican Church. In: The Dortmund Dominicans and the Provost's Church as a Place of Remembrance. Edited by Thomas Schilp, Barbara Welzel. Bielefeld 2006 (Dortmunder Mittelalter-Forschungen 8), pp. 295-310.

2004
(3) Harmony of form and color, space and glass. Wilhelm Buschulte's windows for the nave of Essen Minster. In: Wilhelm Buschulte. Color - Spirit - Zeitgeist? Retrospective. Exhibition catalog (Deutsches Glasmalerei-Museum Linnich, September 25, 2004 to January 16, 2005). Edited by Iris Nestler. Linnich 2004, pp. 25-29. // http://farbe-geist-zeitgeist.buschulte.com/gml_BW_ger/Kirchen/05/Kirche_LR_karte_05.htm

(2) Wilhelm Buschulte's glazing for St. Peter and Paul Eschweiler. An example of his early work. In: Wilhelm Buschulte. Color - Spirit - Zeitgeist? Retrospective. Exhibition catalog (Deutsches Glasmalerei-Museum Linnich, September 25, 2004 to January 16, 2005). Edited by Iris Nestler. Linnich 2004, pp. 20-23. // http://farbe-geist-zeitgeist.buschulte.com/gml_BW_ger/Kirchen/02/Kirche_LR_karte_02.htm

1998
(1) On the origin and history of the Madonna with a Radial Wreath by Jan van Steffeswert in Aachen Cathedral. In: Aachen Cathedral Treasury, Regina Urbanek, Vera Henkelmann: Salve Regina. On the Madonna with a Radiant Wreath by Jan van Steffeswert in Aachen Cathedral. Aachen 1998, pp. 36-62.

Articles in encyclopedias, handbooks and catalogs

Handbook contributions
In print/edited
Light Sources. In: Handbook of Medieval Book Ornament. Edited by David Ganz [in the editorial office].

Lighting. In: Brill Medieval Latin Liturgy - Research Guide. Edited by Andrew J. M. Iriving, Daniel J. DiCenso. Leiden [in the editorial office].

Lexicon entries
*2015 Marienleuchter. In: Reallexikon zur deutschen Kunstgeschichte/RDK Labor 2015 http://www.rdklabor.de/w/?oldid=93163

Subject index/glossaries

2019
Iconographic index, place index, index of persons, subject index. In: Corpus of medieval wood sculpture and panel painting in Schleswig-Holstein. Edited by Uwe Albrecht. Kiel 2019, vol. 2, pp. 1123-1149.
Glossary. In: The treasure of Münster. Precious reliquaries and works of art from the cathedral chamber. The treasure of Münster. Precious reliquaries and works of art from the Domkammer. Edited by Udo Grote. Münster 2019, pp. 256-262 (together with Dr. Gabriel Hefele).

Catalog contributions and inventory entries

2022
Female candlestick figure, c. 1230 [Rheda-Wiedenbrück, St. Aegidius Wiedenbrück]. Barbarossa: The Art of Domination. Exhibition catalog (LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur, Westfälisches Landesmuseum Münster and Schloss Cappenberg Selm, September 14, 2022 to February 5, 2023), ed. by Petra Marx. Petersberg 2022, p. 278.

2020
Cross reliquary / baptismal font / two chalices and a paten / silver candlestick / rosary / ray monstrance / processional staff / wooden shrine / disk monstrance / altar of the apostles / altar of the Virgin Mary / choir stalls / pulpit / lectern and candlestick / Johann Jakob Frings I / Gabriel de Grupello / August Jäger / Johann Daniel Märckel / Philipp Waqener / Heinrich Joseph Wilms / Franz Wüsten junior and August Wüsten. In: Treasury and Basilica of St. Ludgerus. Edited by Daniela Krupp and Andrea Wegener. Essen 2020, pp. 92-97, 102-106, 112-116, 130-135, 136-141, 142-147, 148-151, 170-175, 176-181, 364-369, 374-379, 384-389, 390-395, 396-399, 449, 450, 451, 456-457.

2019
Shrine Madonna from Pelplin (former parish church Klonowken/Klonówka). In: The fascination of the city. The urbanization of Europe in the Middle Ages and Magdeburg law. Exhibition catalog (Museum of Cultural History Magdeburg, September 1, 2019 to February 2, 2020). Edited by Gabriele Köster, Christina Link. Dresden 2019, p. 493f.

Reliquary box in the form of a portable altar / enthroned Mother of God / altar cross / crucifixus / enthroned Madonna / two candlestick angels / console of the cathedral chapter / Fürstenberg silver cross. In: The treasure of Münster. The treasure of Münster. Precious reliquaries and works of art from the cathedral chamber. Precious reliquaries and works of art from the Domkammer. Edited by Udo Grote. Münster 2019, pp. 208-209, 210-213, 220-223, 224-227, 228-229, 236-237, 238-239, 250-251.

2010
Cloth with embroidery. In: Knights, castles and intrigues - AufRuhr 1225! The Middle Ages on the Rhine and Ruhr. Exhibition catalog (LWL-Museum für Archäologie Westfälisches Landesmuseum Herne, February 26 to November 28, 2010). Edited by Brunhilde Leenen. Mainz 2010, p. 486f.

2005
Kelch der Essener Stiftskanoniker / Kelch aus dem Stift Essen / Legenda aurea aus dem Stift Essen. In: Crown and veil. Art from medieval women's convents. Exhibition catalog (Ruhrlandmuseum Essen/Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland Bonn, March 19 to July 3, 2005). Edited by Jutta Frings. Essen 2005, pp. 182, 214, 334.

2004
Akelei cup from Essen. In: The presence of things. 100 years of the Ruhrlandmuseum. Exhibition catalog (Ruhrlandmuseum Essen, December 5, 2004 to February 27, 2005). Edited by Hilde Jamin. Essen 2004, p. 218f.

Reviews

2020
Review of: Jutta Reisinger-Weber: Silversmith's work in the lower Vistula region. Inventory catalog of gold and silversmith works in the West Prussian State Museum. Münster 2016. in: Zeitschrift für Ostmitteleuropa-Forschung 69.4 (2020), p. 595. // https://doi.org/10.25627/202069410884

2017
Review of: Europa Jagellonica. Art and Culture of Central Europe under the Rule of the Jagiellons 1386-1572. Exhibition catalog (House of Brandenburg-Prussian History Potsdam, March 1 to June 16, 2013). Edited by Jiří Fajt. Potsdam 2013. in: Zeitschrift für Ostmitteleuropa-Forschung 66.2 (2017), pp. 239-241. // https://doi.org/10.25627/201766210177

2013
Review of: Via regia - 800 years of movement and encounters. Essay volume and exhibition catalog (Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden/Kaisertrutz Dresden, May 21 to October 31, 2011). Dresden 2011. in: Zeitschrift für Ostmitteleuropa-Forschung 62.4 (2013), pp. 639-641. // https://doi.org/10.25627/20136249573; https://doi.org/10.25627/20136249574

2012
Review of: Terra sanctae Mariae. Medieval images of Marian devotion in the Teutonic Order of Prussia. Edited by Gerhard Eimer, Ernst Gierlich, Matthias Müller. Bonn 2009 (Kunsthistorische Arbeiten der Kulturstiftung der deutschen Vertriebenen 7). In: Zeitschrift für Ostmitteleuropa-Forschung 61.2 (2012), pp. 268-270. // https://doi.org/10.25627/20126129358

2011
Review of: Ecclesiae ornatae. Church decorations of the Middle Ages and the early modern period between monumental value and functionality. Edited by Gerhard Eimer, Ernst Gierlich, Matthias Müller. Bonn 2009 (Kunsthistorische Arbeiten der Kulturstiftung der deutschen Vertriebenen 6). In: Zeitschrift für Ostmitteleuropa-Forschung 60.3 (2011), pp. 433-435. // https://doi.org/10.25627/20116039229

2010
Review of: Ecclesiae ornatae. Church decorations of the Middle Ages and the early modern period between monumental value and functionality. Edited by Gerhard Eimer, Ernst Gierlich, Matthias Müller. Bonn 2009 (Kunsthistorische Arbeiten der Kulturstiftung der deutschen Vertriebenen 6). In: Baltic Studies. Pomeranian Yearbooks for Regional History NF 96 (2010), pp. 150-151.

Current academic projects

As (Associate) Fellow at the Max Weber College for Cultural and Social Science Studies, University of Erfurt
"The medieval city as a light space" in the research group "Religion and Urbanity" (FOR 2779)
"Star-shaped bronze lamps of the European High and Late Middle Ages in ritual contexts of Judaism and Christianity" in the research group "Dynamics of ritual practices in Judaism in pluralistic contexts from antiquity to the present"

As an Associate Fellow at the Research Center for Comparative History of Religious Orders, TU Dresden
"Between claim and reality: light, the use of light, the staging of light and light devices among the Cistercians of the Middle Ages"

SS 2024
Stained glass of the Middle Ages. Image, light and space and their artistic implications
Block seminar for Bachelor and Master students (online),
Caspar-David-Friedrich-Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

SUMMER SEMESTER 2023
Representations of minstrels and the role of women in medieval visual arts and object culture
Block seminar for Bachelor's and Master's students (online),
Caspar-David-Friedrich-Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

SS 2022
The court art of Charlemagne
Block seminar for Bachelor's and Master's students (online),
Caspar David Friedrich Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

WS 2021/2022
Traces of medieval Jewish life in Germany
Block seminar for Bachelor's and Master's students (online),
Caspar David Friedrich Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

WS 2019/2020
Women behind walls or power in women's hands? Architecture and furnishings of the Essen Damenstift and its abbesses in the Middle Ages
Block seminar for Bachelor's and Master's students (in presence),
Caspar David Friedrich Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

SUMMER SEMESTER 2019
Aachen Cathedral - Architecture and decoration of St. Mary's Church in Aachen in the Middle Ages
Block seminar for Bachelor's and Master's students (in presence; with excursion),
Caspar David Friedrich Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

WS 2018/2019
Liturgical vestments of the Middle Ages. An introduction to form and function
Block seminar for Bachelor's and Master's students (in presence; with excursion),
Caspar David Friedrich Institute - Chair of Art History at the University of Greifswald

WS 2021/22
Aesthetics of light. Chandeliers in the medieval church interior
Workshop for the CRC 1391 "Other Aesthetics", subproject A6 "Seven-armed candelabra in churches: Semantics - Contexts - Practices",
University of Tübingen