St. Mary's Church, Lübeck, Germany

St. Mary's Church is the third largest church in Germany. It was built between 1250 and 1350 and has always been a symbol of the power and prosperity of the old Hanseatic city, and is situated at the highest point of the island that forms the old town of Lübeck. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the old Hanseatic City of Lübeck.

St. Mary"s epitomizes north German Brick Gothic and set the standard for about 70 other churches in the Baltic region, making it a building of enormous architectural significance. St Mary"s Church embodied the towering style of French Gothic architecture style using north German brick. It has the tallest brick vault in the world, the height of the central nave being 38.5 metres.

It is built as a three-aisled basilica with side chapels, an ambulatory with radiating chapels, and vestibules like the arms of a transept. The westwork has a monumental two-tower façade. The height of the towers, including the weather vanes, is 124.95 metres and 124.75 metres, respectively.

Numerous works of arts are to be found in St. Mary"s interior: The Cross of Triumph by Gerhard Marcks in the high choir above the Swarte Altar from 1495 is as much at home here as the largest mechanical organ in the world. The well-known church musician and composer Dietrich Buxtehude was St. Mary"s organist and work master from 1667 to 1707.

The commemorative chapel in the south tower with its church bells possesses a unique expressive power. The bells plunged to the stone floor during the 1942 air raids. The Gothic brick basilica has a medieval painting, the largest peel of bells in Schleswig-Holstein and a carillon with 36 bells from St. Catherine"s Church in Danzig.

The two danse macabre windows take the motif and figures from the frieze of the Lübeck danse macabre burned in 1942.

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User Reviews

KH Chong (3 years ago)
Magnificently proportioned architecture with well-crafted brickwork.

Sindhu J (3 years ago)
Great architecture. It’s kind of magical when I first saw it. There are many churches in Lübeck but this one church stands out

Marcus Hurley (3 years ago)
This is a huge church but it's crammed into the streets nearby so it's difficult to get an idea of the scale. Inside the church is vast - apparently the largest brick built vault in the world. The interior is whitewashed and then decorated but in a very understated way. There are a few small chapels to the side, an interesting altarpiece (I think), a recreated astronomical clock and World War 1 memorial. Definitely worth a visit to see the wealth of the Hanseatic merchants.

Matej Maršić (3 years ago)
Nice. Note: If you want to visit the tower, you must reserve your spot a few weeks in advance.

David Maddison (5 years ago)
A monumental church with a few curiosities including a spectacular wall clock and a bell that’s fallen from the tower, crashed into the floor and left there for everyone to see. The height of the ceiling absolutely defies belief and gravity. Stunning setting during Christmas as the markets surround the church

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Infomastern

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Visby Cathedral

Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.

Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.

There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.

St. Mary's Church

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