Church of the Dominican Monastery

The Church of the Dominican Monastery, dedicated to St Mary, was constructed in 1298 and formed part of a Dominican monastic settlement until 1556 when the church became the Saxons’ main Lutheran church. The remaining monastery buildings were demolished in 1888 and the current town hall built in their place.

The church is of late-gothic style with an open nave separated into three by two rows of pillars holding up the roof. Like many buildings in Sighisoara, it was damaged (roof destroyed – walls remained intact) in the 1676 fire which was caused by the explosion of a large portion of the Citadel’s gunpowder stored in the nearby Tailors Tower. The tower and church bell were added in the 1677 renovation.

Inside the church, you will come across a bronze font dating back to 1440, a stone door frame carved in 1570 in Transylvanian renaissance style and built into the northern wall of the church, a collection of 16th and 17th century Oriental carpets donated by the city’s mercantile guilds and now hung around the walls, a baroque organ and a very ornate 1680 altarpiece. The organ and altarpiece were constructed by sculptor Johann Vest and painter Jeremias Stranovius.

There is a small entrance fee to enter the church.

Photography inside the church is prohibited.

Address: Adjacent to the Clock Tower

This entry is one of a group (loop) of entries on Sighisoara, Romania. I suggest you continue with my next entry – HERE – or to start the loop at the beginning go to my introductory entry – HERE.