Church of the Holy Ghost, Protestant church in Red Quarter, Bern, Switzerland
The Church of the Holy Ghost is a Protestant baroque church from the early 18th century in Bern's old town, built with local sandstone. Fourteen monolithic columns carry the vaulted ceiling and organize the wide interior with its surrounding galleries.
A chapel belonging to a hospital and monastery complex stood on this site since the 1200s. After the Reformation, the building went through several changes until the current baroque structure was completed in 1729.
The name of the church goes back to the Holy Ghost, to whom the earlier hospital on this site was also dedicated. Inside, the bright space with its galleries is still used regularly for worship by the local Protestant congregation.
The church stands on Spitalgasse in Bern's old town and is easy to reach on foot from the main train station. If you want to look around the interior without interruption, try to visit outside of service hours.
During construction work in 1726, workers found Roman artifacts under the foundation, pointing to an ancient temple that once stood on this spot. Several layers of history sit one on top of the other beneath this address in the old town.
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