In 1678 the renowned sculptor Johann Heinrich Böhme (1636–1680) began work on a magnificent pulpit altar with a central crucifixion scene for the court church in Weissenfels. It was completed in 1683 by the court sculptor Johann Balthasar Stockhammer (1634–1695).
After the Weissenfels ducal line died out in 1746, the palace was taken over by the Catholic elector of Saxony. The Protestant house of worship became a Catholic church: furnishings were given away, the pulpit was separated from the altar, and an ornate tabernacle was built to store the hosts. The altar was replaced by a relief depicting the Annunciation.