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Founded: 1305Category: Religious sites in Germany
Historical period: Habsburg Dynasty (Germany)
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The village Rappin was first mentioned in 1305 and the construction of the brick church started around 1300. Subsequently, the rib-vaulted nave was added, as were a vestibule and sacristy. The wooden bell tower was created only in 1635. A limestone font, the oldest piece in the church, dates back to the second half of the 13th century, and is decorated with motifs of round arches and faces. Escutcheons and memorial slabs from the 18th century bear witness to the many aristocratic families of the knights' estates in the area.
References: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.