Original scientific paper

https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.15291/gem.5146

Purgatory on Earth: Jerusalem in Der Welt Lohn and Das Herzmäre by Konrad von Würzburg

Luka Planinić orcid.org/0000-0002-1381-6848 ; University of Zadar

Abstract

This article examines the depiction of Jerusalem as an earthly Purgatory in Konrad von Würzburg’s literary works Das Herzmäre and Der Welt Lohn. While previous research has primarily focused on medieval visionary literature and the eschatological contrast between the earthly and the Heavenly Jerusalem, the city is also a recurring theme in Middle High German romances and lyric poetry. In Konrad von Würzburg’s poetry in particular, Jerusalem is shown in the context of a penitential pilgrimage to the Holy Land. This paper argues that Jerusalem functions as an earthly Purgatory in Das Herzmäre and Der Welt Lohn, where knights undergo penance and punishment to avoid Purgatory in the afterlife. This interpretation adds a new eschatological dimension to the literary representation of Jerusalem in medieval literature, associating it not with Paradise, but with Purgatory.

Keywords

Jerusalem; Purgatory; medieval literature; Konrad von Würzburg; penitential pilgrimage

Hrčak ID:

348260

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/348260

Publication date:

31.12.2025.

Article data in other languages: german

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