Matthias Chapel

The Kempen Matthias Brotherhood was revived in 1980. To commemorate 1452, the founding year of the original brotherhood, it had this chapel built in the Stiegerheide in 2002. The sandstone keystone above the door bears the inscription "SMB 2002", pointing to both the builder and the year of construction.

The chapel is a small brick building with a single room. The door sits within a pointed-arch opening and is closed off by a wrought-iron grille that serves as the door leaf. Above the opening rests the sandstone keystone. The gabled roof is covered in slate and crowned by a cross.

Inside stands a wooden figure of the Apostle Matthias, about 80 centimetres tall, carved by Heinrich Beckers. The altar consists of a marble slab resting on two marble posts. The coloured stained-glass windows were created by Wolfgang Schwarzer between 2002 and 2004, partly using remnants of the destroyed Basilica of St. Matthias in Trier. They depict the brotherhood's motto "Ihr seid meine Freunde" ("You are my friends") along with roses, a pilgrim's staff, an axe and a group of pilgrims. Outside, a tended flowerbed with a bench and a memorial stone for deceased members invites visitors to pause.