St. Mary's church, Gothic parish church in Bergen auf Rügen, Germany.
St. Mary's Church is a red-brick Gothic hall church with a square west tower topped by a green-clad spire. Its front features tall pointed-arch windows with light stone surrounds and a blue clock face with gold numerals. Inside, clustered brick piers with red and cream glazed chevron and diamond patterns support pointed arches and a ribbed vault painted with foliate ornament.
Construction started around 1180 under Prince Jaromar I and the building was consecrated in 1193 as a Benedictine convent, later transforming into a parish church in 1380.
The wall paintings are the only complete painted interior of a church in northern Germany and the only surviving 13th-century murals in the region. August Oetken restored them between 1896 and 1903. The 14th-century font and the 1776 pulpit by J. Freese of Stralsund are among the furnishings visitors can see.
The church stands in the centre of Bergen auf Rügen, on the island's main town square. It is open to visitors outside service times; the parish office confirms current hours. The interior is entered from the west porch, where a limestone grave slab of Abbess Elisabeth is set into the wall.
The north tower clock face has 61 minute marks instead of 60. During restoration after a storm, workers left a gap between the 11 and 12 and simply added an extra mark; German sources date the restoration to 1983, Polish ones to 1985. The extra minute drew media attention in 1999.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,622 contributors worldwide.
