My Travel and History Blog, Focussing mostly on Roman and Mediaeval Times
18 Sept 2005
Brick Cathedrals - St. Mary's Church in Lübeck
This post will be rewritten with digital photos from a later visit to Lübeck.
St. Mary's Church (Marienkirche) was commissioned by the Council of Lübeck, and competed with the Cathedral, which was founded by Duke Heinrich and later became the church of the bishop. It replaced an older Romanesque church (which in its turn replaced the first wooden construction from 1160). Surrounded by houses and the Town Hall, St. Mary's Church is imposing from the outside - albeit you have to crane your neck back to see most of it - yet more so from the inside. It is a basilica with three naves and a choir; the middle nave being higher than the side naves so that light streams in from the windows, as you can see on the pic (which also shows the flying buttresses). The church is made of brick stones, but inside it is mostly painted in white; the edges of the pillar-supported arcs that hold the elaborate roof construction, are painted with red, dark green and golden ornaments.
The first impression, especially on a sunny day, is the brightness of the inside, and the enormous height of the naves (main nave 38.5 metres). The naves are separated by rows of pillars to hold the arched roof segments, the arcs are not perfect half-rounds, but slightly pointed (typical for the Gothic style), and the pillars are very slender, which adds to the impression of height and makes you feel like you are walking though a white alley of stone. With a length of 104 metres and a bredth of 58 metres, the church can well compete with its models, the great 13th century French cathedrals, While St. Mary's Church in the present form was built from 1251 onwards with the last finishing touches added about 1310, the simple ornaments are more like the older churches, not like the maginificent facades of fe. York Minster. Read more »
St. Mary's Church (Marienkirche) was commissioned by the Council of Lübeck, and competed with the Cathedral, which was founded by Duke Heinrich and later became the church of the bishop. It replaced an older Romanesque church (which in its turn replaced the first wooden construction from 1160). Surrounded by houses and the Town Hall, St. Mary's Church is imposing from the outside - albeit you have to crane your neck back to see most of it - yet more so from the inside. It is a basilica with three naves and a choir; the middle nave being higher than the side naves so that light streams in from the windows, as you can see on the pic (which also shows the flying buttresses). The church is made of brick stones, but inside it is mostly painted in white; the edges of the pillar-supported arcs that hold the elaborate roof construction, are painted with red, dark green and golden ornaments.
The first impression, especially on a sunny day, is the brightness of the inside, and the enormous height of the naves (main nave 38.5 metres). The naves are separated by rows of pillars to hold the arched roof segments, the arcs are not perfect half-rounds, but slightly pointed (typical for the Gothic style), and the pillars are very slender, which adds to the impression of height and makes you feel like you are walking though a white alley of stone. With a length of 104 metres and a bredth of 58 metres, the church can well compete with its models, the great 13th century French cathedrals, While St. Mary's Church in the present form was built from 1251 onwards with the last finishing touches added about 1310, the simple ornaments are more like the older churches, not like the maginificent facades of fe. York Minster. Read more »
