Best Churches in Lübeck

1. Marienkirche

Timings: 9am–5pm daily, in winter to 3pm.

St Mary’s church was constructed by the Lubeckers as a monument to themselves.

The twin-towered basilica with transept and a passageway around the polygon shaped presbytery is the brick modification of a Neo-Classical French cathedral.

Its vast interior boasts the highest vaulted brick ceiling in the world (40 m/131 ft) which dominates the other interior features. These include a 10 m (32 ft) bronze Holy Sacrament (1476–9); a baptismal font in the main nave dating from 1337; the altar dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the Sangerkapelle (singers’ chapel) made in Antwerp in 1518; and the main, late-Gothic Swarte-Altar with the Madonna. The Briefkapelle, the southwestern side chapel built around 1310, is one of the earliest examples of star vaulting in Europe.

In one of the towers, the shattered fragments of the church bells have been left embedded in the floor where they fell during the bombing in 1942; the present bells are from St Catherine’s in Gdansk.

2. Jakobikirche

This 15th-century church, which suffered only insignificant damage during World War II, has preserved its original, mainly Baroque features. Of particular note are the main altar as well as the side altar in the south chapel. The latter was established around 1500 by the mayor, Heinrich Brbse, and depicts a scene of the Crucifixion carved in sandstone.

Both the small and the large organ originate from the 15th century.

3. Katharinenkirche

Tel: (0451) 122 41 37.

Timings: 15 Apr–30 Sep: 10–5pm Tue–Sun.

St Catherine’s, the only surviving monastic church, was built by the Franciscans, as is apparent from the absence of a tower and its monastic gallery in the presbytery of the main nave. The western fa軋de, with its glazed brickwork, is of a high artistic quality. In the 20th century, sculptures carved by Ernst Barlach were added (Woman in the Wind, Beggar on Crutches and The Singing Novitiate).

On the western side hangs the painting of The Resurrection of Lazarus by Jacopo Tintoretto, bought by a wealthy patrician; the sculpture of St George and the dragon is a copy of the famous original by the L・eck artist Bernt Notke, which is now in Stockholm.

4. Dom

Tel: (0451) 747 04.

Timings: Apr–Oct: 10am–6pm daily; Nov–Mar: 10am–4pm daily.

The cathedral, completed in 1341, takes the form of a Gothic hall-church. Its most precious possession is the Triumphal Cross sculpted from a 17-m (55-ft) oak tree by Bernt Notke, a celebrated local artist. The giant figures, resplendent with emotion, include Adam and Eve, as well as the founder, Bishop Albert Krummedick.

Among numerous memorials, that dedicated to Bishop Heinrich Bocholt, made from bronze, stands out. Additionally, two valuable sculptures can be seen; Holy Mary Mother of God with a crown composed of stars, as well as the Beautiful Madonna in the southern nave (1509). Note the bronze baptismal font by Lorenz Grove from 1455, with its three kneeling angels.