Bücken
Pause for a moment in the "Bücker Dom"
Legend has it that in 1050 some monks who were commissioned to determine the location of a new church in the Hoya region asked for a sign from God. Where the donkey would bend down and sit down, they wanted to build the church. But when the animal wanted to settle in the "Wüsteney", they dragged it on until it bent down at the place where the collegiate church stands today - in the middle of the community of Bücken. The "Cathedral of the Hoya Land" with its impressive double tower façade is equipped with great art treasures. These include the triumphal cross from 1230 and the richly illustrated stained glass windows, also from the 13th century.
The "Bücker Dom" has an eventful history behind it. The stone building, built from 1050 onwards, replaced an old wooden church in the mission centre founded in 882 by Bishop Rimbert of Bremen. The collegiate church was expanded in several stages until 1350. In the course of the secularization of the monastery, the building declined after the Reformation, before the thorough restoration by Adalbert Hotzen took place from 1863 to 1867. Named after St. Maternian and later after St. Nicholas, whose life is depicted in the medieval windows, the collegiate church is considered one of the most important sacred buildings in the Middle Weser region in art history. It is about 50 m long, 25 m wide, the towers are a good 52 m high. Among the many remarkable artistic and cultural treasures of the "Cathedral", the triumphal cross (1230), the choir stalls (1340) and the altar (1510) stand out. Since the year 2000, a Stations of the Cross, created by Pablo Hirndorf from weathered copper sheets of the old church tower, have adorned the side walls.