Timeless walls whisper tales. Stand before the Evangelische Kirche Bonames. This church in Frankfurt am Main is far more than just a building. It’s a living testament to history. Its foundation stretches back to 799. An earlier church stood outside the present town. But the structure you see before you? That’s a late Gothic masterpiece. Master builders Arnolt Holtzhusen and Henne Wisse erected it in 1477. It was built within Bonames’ city walls. Yet it was also a fortified church. Its thick walls still bear witness to that era. A bell called the faithful to worship. Records mention a bell ringer as early as 1483. Initially the Marienkirche in Lich held the church patronage.
The Reformation transformed Bonames in the 1530s. The Counts of Solms took over the patronage. They ruled Lich and thus Bonames. In 1546 imperial troops ravaged Bonames. The church suffered damage but was later restored. A 1572 map shows it intact with its bell. In 1618 the Count of Solms sold the patronage to Frankfurt. Frankfurt already held secular rule over Bonames. The Thirty Years’ War struck again. The church suffered severe damage. Surrounding communities and Frankfurt itself contributed funds for its repair. The church underwent extensive restoration from 1642 to 1661. It was rebuilt in the Baroque style. Its appearance has remained virtually unchanged ever since. Two oval windows were added to the facade in 1752. In 1776 the bell tower was expanded to house three bells. The interior’s fittings were also expanded.
In 1930 Martin Elsaesser led a major renovation. The altar was raised in the mid-1960s. Previously its floor was level with the nave. A sacristy was added in the early 1980s. The church stands on a natural plateau north of the Nidda River. It’s in Bonames’ historic center. It faces east along Homburger Landstraße. The long white building is topped with a steep slate roof. Red sandstone accents its corners and window surrounds. Three tall windows grace the south facade. The east end has a hexagonal choir. The west gable has an entrance with a canopy and an oval window. The west side also features a stepped spire. The tower’s two stories are octagonal.
Inside the hall church has a three-sided gallery and a flat ceiling. The gallery arrangement the wall paintings and the crucifix are reminiscent of Frankfurt’s Katharinenkirche. It served as a model. The Evangelische Kirche Bonames is a cultural monument under Hessian heritage law. Twenty gallery paintings depict Christ his apostles and scenes from the Old and New Testaments. The altar with crucifix and angels the pulpit with gospel scenes and the black marble font date from 1753. Frankfurt’s Land Hauptmann Leonhard Kühn donated the font. The Holzhausen family donated a 1670 painting of the Flight into Egypt in 1894. A memorial painting by Frankfurt artist Heiland commemorates WWI casualties. Martin Elsaesser added colorful murals during the 1930 renovation. Seven gravestones survive including those of Achilles and Johann Adolf Wunderer and pastors Johann Philipp Mann and Johann Heinrich Petersen. Bernhard Dreymann built the organ in 1851. Eifert of Stadtilm renovated it in 1898. It now has 17 stops. The old churchyard saw burials until 1867. Some grave slabs are affixed to the church’s exterior. One belongs to Johannes Holtzmann. The parish dates back to 1297. Pastor Johann Heinrich Henrici Senior impressed Philipp Jakob Spener in 1667. He performed confirmations in the service an unusual practice then. The independent Kalbach parish reunited with Bonames in 2008. Together they are now the Evangelische Miriamsgemeinde Bonames-Kalbach. This church is more than stone and mortar. It’s a story etched in time. A story waiting to be discovered.