Church of Our Saviour

Copenhagen, Denmark

Church of Our Saviour (Vor Frelsers Kirke) is a baroque church, most famous for its corkscrew spire with an external winding staircase that can be climbed to the top, offering extensive views over central Copenhagen. It is also noted for its carillon, which is the largest in northern Europe and plays melodies every hour from 8 am to midnight.

When Christian IV planned Christianshavn in 1617, it was intended as an independent merchant's town on the island of Amager and it therefore needed a church. A temporary church was inaugurated in 1639 but construction of the present Church of Our Saviour, the design of Lambert van Haven, did not start until 1682. The church was inaugurated 14 years later in 1695 but important interior features like the altar had a notoriously temporary character and the tower still had no spire. The church got its permanent altar in 1732 but plans for construction of the spire was not revitalized until 1747 under the reign of Frederik V. The new architect on the project was Lauritz de Thurah. He soon abandoned van Haven´'s original design in favour of his own project that was approved by the King in 1749. Three years later the spire was finished and the King climbed the tower at a ceremony on 28 August 1752.

The church is built in a Dutch baroque style and its basic layout is a Greek cross. The walls rest on a granite foundation and are made of red and yellow tiles but in a random pattern unlike what is seen in Christian IV's buildings where they are generally systematically arranged. The facade is segmented by pilasters in the palladian giant order, that is they continue in the building's entire height. The pilasters are of the Tuscan order with bases and capitals in sandstone. The cornice is also in sandstone but with a frieze in tiles. Between the pilasters are tallround-arched windows with clear glass and iron cames. There are entrances at the gable of the cross arms except for the eastern gable where the sacristy is added. The main entrance is in the western gable below the tower and has a sandstone portal. All entrances are raised four steps from street level. At each side of the tower, there is a gate at street level leading to the two crypts of the church. The roof is vaulted and covered in black-glazed tiles.

The altarpiece is the work of Nicodemus Tessins the Younger. It depicts a scene from the Garden of Gethsemane between two columns, where Jesus is comforted by an angel while another angel hangs in the air beside them, carrying the golden chalice. On each side, two figures of Pietas and Justitia illustrate the King's motto. The two columns carry a broken, curved architrave and gable. Behind the opening of the broken gable is placed a pane with Jahve's name in Hebrew inscribed and lit from behind. Around the pane is an arrangement of gilded beans and cloud formations.

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Address

Sankt Annæ Gade 29, Copenhagen, Denmark
See all sites in Copenhagen

Details

Founded: 1695
Category: Religious sites in Denmark
Historical period: Absolutism (Denmark)

More Information

www.vorfrelserskirke.dk
en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


City Hall (1,6 km)
Charlottenborg Palace (0,9 km)
Christiansborg Palace (1 km)
Rundetårn (1,5 km)
Trinitatis Church (1,5 km)
Amalienborg (1,2 km)
Caritas Well (1,5 km)
Rosenborg Castle (1,8 km)
National Museum of Denmark (1,2 km)


Kronborg Castle (40,7 km)
Frederiksborg Palace (34,4 km)
Malmö Stortorget (26,5 km)
Malmö Castle (25,8 km)
St. Mary's Church (42 km)
St. Peter's Church (26,7 km)
Kärnan (42,2 km)
Helsingør Cathedral (40,4 km)
Carmelite Priory (40,5 km)

User Reviews

Ali Cetiner (4 months ago)
I stayed in Copenhagen for 3 days. I simply had to bike on a rental here at the beginning of each day to enjoy the beautiful cityscape of the city despite the cold March weather. It was simply too entertaining to climb the spiral stairs fitted on the baroque roof of this church and also chuckle at those with shaky legs who are scared to climb in open air an altitude so high. That is most certainly something that you can do only in this particular church and none others in the world.
Shivashim Bhowmick (5 months ago)
It is absolutely reaching the sky, a wonderful experience of meeting the heights of Denmark. It is beautiful and an awesome experience to get to the top and view the beautiful city of Copenhagen. Must go place in Copenhagen
Gianmarco Boschi (5 months ago)
Very nice thing to do in Copenhagen. The view is great. Inside the stairs are quite narrow and you often have to let people pass (up or down). Once outside you can reach the top until the golden sphere. Don’t do it if you have problems with heights. The price is 35 for adults and 25 for students/reduced.
Imelda FS (5 months ago)
Looking for beautiful view on city of Copenhagen? Then stop here and take a look! The real deal is waiting for you on top of the tower. Definitely worth couple stairs to walk. You will get super nice shoot for city pictures!
Maria Fomitšenko (7 months ago)
I really liked this church. It’s easy to spot this church already from far away because of its intriguing tower, namely this spiral fence on a roof. Wonder if there are stairs? In case there is and you can go up on the top. Only over 100 stairs and you can enjoy the view on the city. Stairs are slippery on a rainy days, be careful, also the way up is complicated if there are a lot of people going up and down, not so much space. In the church itself is also one beautiful organ (musical instrument), which catches your eye. Otherwise inside is quite empty I would say. You can visit inside for free but going up will cost a bit. I recommend
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The Porta Nigra (Latin for black gate) is the largest Roman city gate north of the Alps. It is designated as part of the Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St. Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier UNESCO World Heritage Site. The name Porta Nigra originated in the Middle Ages due to the darkened colour of its stone; the original Roman name has not been preserved. Locals commonly refer to the Porta Nigra simply as Porta.

The Porta Nigra was built in grey sandstone between 186 and 200 AD. The original gate consisted of two four-storied towers, projecting as near semicircles on the outer side. A narrow courtyard separated the two gate openings on either side. For unknown reasons, however, the construction of the gate remained unfinished. For example, the stones at the northern (outer) side of the gate were never abraded, and the protruding stones would have made it impossible to install movable gates. Nonetheless, the gate was used for several centuries until the end of the Roman era in Trier.

In Roman times, the Porta Nigra was part of a system of four city gates, one of which stood at each side of the roughly rectangular Roman city. The Porta Nigra guarded the northern entry to the Roman city, while the Porta Alba (White Gate) was built in the east, the Porta Media (Middle Gate) in the south, and the Porta Inclyta (Famous Gate) in the west, next to the Roman bridge across the Moselle. The gates stood at the ends of the two main streets of the Roman Trier, one of which led north-south and the other east-west. Of these gates, only the Porta Nigra still exists today.

In the early Middle Ages the Roman city gates were no longer used for their original function and their stones were taken and reused for other buildings. Also iron and lead braces were broken out of the walls of the Porta Nigra for reuse. Traces of this destruction are still clearly visible on the north side of the gate.

After 1028, the Greek monk Simeon lived as a hermit in the ruins of the Porta Nigra. After his death (1035) and sanctification, the Simeonstift monastery was built next to the Porta Nigra to honor him. Saving it from further destruction, the Porta Nigra was transformed into a church: The inner court of the gate was roofed and intermediate ceilings were inserted. The two middle storeys of the former gate were converted into church naves: the upper storey being for the monks and the lower storey for the general public. The ground floor with the large gates was sealed, and a large outside staircase was constructed alongside the south side (the town side) of the gate, up to the lower storey of the church. A small staircase led further up to the upper storey. The church rooms were accessible through former windows of the western tower of the Porta Nigra that were enlarged to become entrance doors (still visible today). The top floor of the western tower was used as church tower, the eastern tower was leveled, and an apse added at its east side. An additional gate - the much smaller Simeon Gate - was built adjacent to the East side of the Porta Nigra and served as a city gate in medieval times.

In 1802 Napoleon Bonaparte dissolved the church in the Porta Nigra and the monastery beside it, along with the vast majority of Trier"s numerous churches and monasteries. On his visit to Trier in 1804, Napoleon ordered that the Porta Nigra be converted back to its Roman form. Only the apse was kept; but the eastern tower was not rebuilt to its original height. Local legend has it that Napoleon originally wanted to completely tear down the church, but locals convinced him that the church had actually been a Gaulish festival hall before being turned into a church. Another version of the story is that they told him about its Roman origins, persuading him to convert the gate back to its original form.

In 1986 the Porta Nigra was designated a World Heritage Site, along with other Roman monuments in Trier and its surroundings. The modern appearance of the Porta Nigra goes back almost unchanged to the reconstruction ordered by Napoleon. At the south side of the Porta Nigra, remains of Roman columns line the last 100 m of the street leading to the gate. Positioned where they had stood in Roman times, they give a slight impression of the aspect of the original Roman street that was lined with colonnades. The Porta Nigra, including the upper floors, is open to visitors.

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