Icking

The spectacular growth of Icking (to about 2000 citizens today) asked for a bigger church. I don’t know what you think, but I find the old church (which is now used only for special occasions) has much more charm. This church, however, supplies me with a terminus post or ante quem for most pictures of Icking...

Among other things, this old map shows the railway from Munich to Beuerberg (and Bichl, not on the map): the Isartalbahn. In 1891/2 the line Munich (Isartalbahnhof) - Wolfratshausen was built, and in 1897/8 extended to Bichl, in the far south. In 1972, the Olympic games took place in Munich and the first subway line was opened to the public. Also the line Munich - Wolfratshausen was renamed “S10”, though it wasn’t fully integrated in the Munich suburban S*-Bahn system until, nine years later, it became the S7. No wonder Icking blossomed in the first half of the 20th C.: it was the northernmost village offering a foretaste of the Alps and the fresh air city people wanted. The earliest house which wasn’t a farm or a church was erected in 1896 by a schoolteacher; it is ours now. The map was taken from Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon. 6th Edition, Leipsic/Vienna 1902-1908. * “S” stands for “Schnell” (fast), a quality the S-Bahn is often lacking.

View on Icking from the ruins of the Icking ski-jump. Yes, Icking used to be a winter sports center... All that is left today is some cross-country skiing. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

In ihrer heutigen Form wird die Ickinger Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche um 1500 datiert, aber Teile sind noch romanisch, und man nimmt an, daß ihre Ursprünge bis ins 8. Jh. zurückreichen. In der unmittelbaren Umgebung wurden frühmittelalterliche Reihengräber ausgegraben. In den 60er Jahren des vergangenen Jahrhunderts, nachdem die neue katholische Kirche erbaut worden war, war sie in einem schlechten Zustand und wurde fast abgerissen. Ausnahmsweise haben Ickinger Bürger sich erfolgreich darum bemüht, ihre kulturelle Erbschaft zu bewahren: die Kirche wurde restauriert und wird bis heute für spezielle Gelegenheiten benutzt. In its present form, the Icking Holy-Cross-church is dated around 1500, but parts of it are Romanesque, and it’s believed to have 8th C. origins. Nearby, early medieval graves have been excavated. In the 60ies of the last century, after the new Catholic church had been built, it was in bad shape and got very nearly demolished. For once, Icking citizens were successful in preserving their cultural heritage: the church was restored and is still being used for special occasions.

Interior of the Holy-Cross-Church at Icking. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

The old cemetery surrounding the Holy-Cross-Church. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

Ohne Ludwig Dürr wäre Icking wohl nie geworden, was es jetzt ist: er entdeckte das Dorf für die Welt. Er liegt begraben im kleinen Friedhof bei der alten Ickinger Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche. Without Ludwig Dürr Icking wouldn’t have been what it is now: he discovered the village for the world. He was buried in the small graveyard surrounding the old Holy-Cross-Church.

Die spätmittelalterliche Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche ist das älteste Gebäude Ickings und sein natürlicher Mittelpunkt. The medieval Holy-Cross-Church is the oldest building and the natural center of the community, lying opposite of our house. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

The Isar river is just a 15 minutes walk away from where we live. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

Though it makes an archaic impression the “Ickinger Wehr” is only about 80 years old. It’s also the only way to cross the Isar in our area (and stay dry). Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

This is where the Isar and Loisach rivers meet, a few miles south of Icking. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

Isar valley near Icking Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

The house where the poet Rainer Maria Rilke spent several years of his life (see also here). Irschenhausen is a part of Icking. It must have been founded centuries after Icking itself, but time has dealt more generously with it. It was, and to some extent still is, a center of artists and writers. Scan of a picture taken by my brother.

Wie die Endung “-ing” in seinem Namen suggeriert, wurde Icking vermutlich im 6. Jh. gegründet. Es kommt aber zum ersten Mal vor in einem Dokument aus 806; deshalb werden wir seinen 1200. Gründungstag im nächsten Jahr feiern. Der Bürgermeister hat alle Bürger dazu aufgerufen, ein passendes Logo zu entwerfen; dieses stammt von mir. As the "-ing" in its name indicates, Icking was probably founded in the 6th Century. However, it first occurs in an official record of 806, and so we'll celebrate its 1200th anniversary next year. The Mayor has appealed to all citizens to design a logo to go with it; this one is mine.

Our house in the 50ies: the big changes were yet to come... However, the road had been broadened and the long stairs leading to it had to make a corner. In the 60ies the concrete wall on the left was extended to the right: the house kept its address but lost its entrance on this side. This makes us hard to find; deliveries are often guided by phone calls...

Every now and then someone comes and tries to sell you a photo he took from high up above. As usual, the scan wasn’t very good, so I processed it through PhotoArtist Express. It now definitely has become a work of art. In the background is a hotel called “Alpenblick”, built in the fifties. It saved our lives during the period we had a house with no kitchen. Perhaps we prolonged its life, too: we have a kitchen, now, and the hotel has closed down.

I hope this picture will, at least partially, satisfy Oldwoodchuck’s wish for a more recent picture of our house. I don’t know who those people standing in our garden are... Are they stealing apples? If I had shot this picture myself I would have called the police first! Scan of a picture taken by my brother.