work began. History Bernward, Bishop of Hildesheim, gifted the first large wheel chandelier to the Hildesheim Cathedral built by Bishop Altfrid, and later also gave one to the adjacent church of St. Michael. After Altfrid's cathedral burned down in 1046, Bishop Hezilo had it rebuilt with alterations, rejecting the plan of his predecessor Azelin to build a new cathedral, and in the nave he hung a "crown chandelier of shimmering gold", which is now known by his name as the Hezilo chandelier. It is not clear what influence the earlier chandelier of Bernward had on the design of this replacement. Symbolism The model for a chandelier as the symbol of the New Jerusalem was the great wheel chandelier in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre above Golgotha; the Azelin chandelier was designed to have the same symbolism. Elements of Islamic art in the ornamentation of the chandelier support the identification with Jerusalem. The Hezilo chandelier was at the liturgical center of the cathedral until the nineteenth century, with services held under its crown of light. Its location marked the beginning and end of the great processions of the cathedral chapter on Sundays and holidays. The chandelier served as a symbol of righteousness. Violations of the sovereignty of the diocese were solemnly resolved beneath it. Restoration Restoration work was carried out in the 16th century and again at the beginning of the 19th and 20th centuries, During the Second World War, the Hezilo chandelier was dismantled and removed from the cathedral — which was virtually destroyed by Allied bombing in March 1945. After the cathedral was rebuilt during the 1950s, the 900-year-old chandelier was placed in the crossing. It underwent extensive conservation work from 2002 until 2007. In 2010, when restoration work on the cathedral began, it was moved to St. Godehard, a Romanesque church in Hildesheim and the temporary seat of the bishop. Inscription Due to early modern restorations, the verse inscription has been significantly altered. The donor's name, "Hezilo" was written in a later script. The oldest version is in a manuscript from around 1500: Bibliography Willmuth Arenhövel. Der Hezilo-Radleuchter im Dom zu Hildesheim: Beiträge zur Hildesheimer Kunst des 11. Jahrhunderts unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Ornamentik. Mann, Berlin 1975, . Norbert Bergmann. "Der Hezilo-Leuchter – Eine Systemanalyse und ihre Folgen," in Ursula Schädler-Saub (ed.), Weltkulturerbe Deutschland. Präventative Konservierung und Erhaltungsperspektiven, internationale Fachtagung des Deutschen Nationalkomitees von ICOMOS. Hildesheim, 23.–25.