The monastery church and the hermitage buildings and cloister form the heart of the monastery complex. Styles and stages from Romanesque to late Gothic are all represented in this one, small, unique and atmospheric spot.
The majestic monks' refectory.
The Maulbronn hermitage buildings include several rarities of medieval monastery architecture. The narthex, monks' refectory (or dining hall) and the south wing of the cloister were the first examples of early Gothic architecture in Germany. The hermitage buildings, built in around 1200, have been renovated several times. Their history is only partially known, and thus they are of great interest to architectural historians.
Only this room, the calefactory, was heated.
In addition to the monastery church and the larger halls, such as the chapter house, the monk's refectory and the lay refectory, many other spaces tell of the everyday life of the Maulbronn monks. Life at the monastery was full of privation. Only a single room was heated: the calefactory, the monastery's warming house. The addition of individual rooms around the cloister is indicative of the Cistercian's unusual functional architecture.
The monastery church, with its unusually tall ridged turret, can be seen from quite a distance. The hermitage grounds are directly to its north. The monastery church interior is reached through the arcade, or lay corridor, which is located between the Paradise and the lay refectory in the northwest corner and leads to a hidden monastery gate. Behind the lay corridor, it is also possible to access the cellarium, a deep, arched hall where stone masonry and medieval construction tools are on display.
Examples of architectural history: stone masonry and medieval tools displayed in the cellarium.
Monks choir at Christmas.
In addition to the monks, the monastery was also inhabited by lay brothers, or conversi. They were members of the monastic community but were not ordained. They worked as craftsmen or within the monastery's business activities. Monastic rules stipulated a strict separation between the monks and the laity. This separation also applied in church, where a Romanesque choir screen separated the monks' space from that of the lay brothers.
