Colorful examples of monastery tradition.
In a difficult time, Abbot Laurentius Autenrieth wanted to honor the monastery's benefactor family with a commission. The images decorate the pilasters of the nave. To the far west, two pairs stand across from each other. These are followed by the most important rulers from the House of Staufen, depicted as individual figures, including Friedrich I Barbarossa and Emperor Friedrich II. It should be noted that the depicted members of the House of Staufen wear clothing that was modern when the images were created, circa 1530, not the clothing of the 12th century.
The benefactors of the monastery and a model of the church
The monastery church's benefactors can be seen on the south pilaster: Duke Friedrich of Swabia (approximately 1047–1105) and Agnes von Waiblingen (1072–1143). Friedrich was the builder of Hohenstaufen Castle and Duke of Swabia since 1079. In the same year, he married the emperor's daughter, Agnes. She bore 21 children in two marriages – no at all unusual for a woman at the time. The two benefactors present a model of their monastery church, though without the west towers: They no longer existed when the images were created around 1530.
Restored mural.
The opposite mural, on the north pilaster, depicts Konrad and Gertrud as benefactors: They hold a winged altar in their hands. King Konrad (1093–1152) created the foundation for the splendor of his House. As the founder of Lorch Monastery, he had his ancestors' remains moved from the collegiate church in the village to the monastery church. Earlier, this mural was associated with King Phillipp of Swabia and his wife Irene Angelina of Byzantium—a mistake made by Martin Crusius, a professor from Tübingen, in 1588.
It's almost impossible to say what the murals looked like when they were painted around 1530, they have been renovated and repainted so often—an indication of how highly these images of the legendary House of Staufen were valued. And drawings of the murals of the House of Staufen from earlier centuries don't help: They demonstrate primarily one thing, namely the taste and viewpoint of the time in which they were made. The last restoration of these large paintings took place in 1951.
The murals, which have been repeatedly restored, speak to the high estimation of the House of Staufen.
