The Black Church |
Court J. Honterus 2, Brasov
Brasov's most important landmark,
the Black Church, the largest Gothic church between Vienna
and Istanbul, towers over Piata Sfatului and the old town.
Originally dedicated to Virgin Marry the church was Roman-Catholic
for more than a century and a half and later with the reformation
sweeping across Europe it became a Lutheran one. Service is
still held today for the small German community from Brasov
on Sundays. |
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The Black Church has a turbulent history:
built between 1385 and 1477 on the site of an earlier church
(destroyed by Mongol
invasions in 1242), the construction of the Marienkirche was
hampered by extensive damage caused by Turkish raids in 1421.
The church was given its new name after disaster struck again
in 1689, when the 'Great Fire, set by Hapsburg invaders, leveled
most of the town, heavily damaged the church, blackening its
walls. Restoration took almost 100 years. Of the two towers
planned, only one (65,6m high) was finished. The year 1477
is written
in Gothic letters on the front gate, the only piece made in
wood that resisted the fire. The original Gothic interior has
suffered under the restorations, and the lofty, light space
you see nowadays is mostly Baroque. Most of the objects inside
the church date from the reconstruction time except for the
baptismal font which was cast in bronze by a local craftsman
in 1450.
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 The
church is built of friable grit stones and andesite arranged
in cubic shape. That's the reason why the statues placed on
the exteriors couldn't survive the time and had to be replaced
by new ones. The oldest statue still standing belongs to Saint
Peter and it is to be seen on the Southern part of the church.
The church comprises six portals, representing different architectural
styles from Gothic to Renaissance style. The portal placed
on the East side of the church was built in 1436 by Matei Corvin,
a Transylvanian ruler. He also added a fresco to the interior
gate. Inside the church there are three naves split by pillars.
Gothic
elements
mix with Baroque.
On the Southeast portal there is a fresco, dating 15th century,
representing Saint Mary sitting on a throne with Jesus in her
arms, surrounded by angels and Saint Ecaterina and Barbara.
On the North side there is a Golden gate with a small portico
placed somewhere between the buttresses. The portico is covered
by a simple ogive and on the facade there is a semicircular
arch. Right above there are sculptured leaves, reminiscence
of the Gothic style.
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The Black Church exhibits the heaviest mobile bell in Romania
(6 t), murals in the Italian Renaissance style and an organ,
with 4,000 pipes, 7 scales and 4 key boards. It was built in
1838-1839 by the organ creator Buchholz from Berlin and it ranks
among the biggest organs in the South-Eastern Europe. It is the
only organ of the Buchholz's firm which has preserved its original
form. The organ recitals held here are very famous and many tourists
attend them. |
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The Black Church has the richest collection
of Anatolian carpets in all Europe. Most of them date from
the 17th and 18th centuries.
They come from Brussa, Uschak and Ghiordes, famous Anatolian
names for carpet weaving. They were donated by the city's merchants
on their return from Orient to show their gratitude towards
God. The church windows have recently been fit out with special
UV-filtering
glass to protect the 119 fabulous carpets. |
 Exiting
the church, in the courtyard, you will see Johannes Honterus'(1498-1549)
statue (2.5 m high). He was an important
reformer and humanist who became Stadtpfarrer (priest) a
few years after bringing Lutheranism to Brasov in 1542. The
statue
was cast in bronze by the German sculpture, Harra Magnussen.
The public saw the statue for the first time on August 1898,
when they celebrated 400 years since Johannes Honterus was
born.
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