Der Kirchenfürst, Seelenhirte und Kunstmäzen Egbert von Trier (um 950–993)

Before the year 1000, Egbert of Trier was the ideal type of an Ottonian bishop. Of princely birth, he grew up at the constantly travelling imperial court and was well connected with the decision-makers of his day. He served as chancellor, when necessary as a warrior in turbulent times, and as archbishop (977–993) of the oldest diocese in a region that would one day belong to the later Germany. In Trier — amid the vast buildings and ruins of the Roman era — he cared for destroyed and impoverished churches and monasteries and promoted education and the arts, in order “den Geist und die Augen zu weiden” (to delight the spirit and the eyes) of the people for whom he was responsible. A pastor of souls, then, who very deliberately employed gifted artists to shift the gaze from a world of danger and suffering to one of redemption and peace. This message lives on in the works of art he commissioned.

Hiltrud Westermann-Angerhausen presents Egbert's life and work by closely interweaving historical research with the analysis of major works of art. At its centre are the Egbert Codex and the so-called Egbert Shrine with its expressive golden apostle's foot on the Andrew portable altar, kept in Trier Cathedral, together with the Staff of St Peter reliquary, likewise made for Trier and now in Limburg.