St. Mary's church Wittstock, Parish church and architectural monument in Wittstock, Germany.
St. Mary's Church is a three-aisled hall church of Brick Gothic, about 65 m long, with a 68 m tower topped by a baroque lantern spire. Its red-tiled roof covers a straight-ended choir, a north Marienkapelle (1484) and a south chapel with a double stepped gable (1498). Inside, ribbed vaults rest on slender columns, with U-shaped galleries along both walls.
The west tower and the start of the church go back to Wittstock's planned expansion around 1240; from the late 13th century the nave was extended into a three-aisled hall. From 1471 the bishops of Havelberg had the building enlarged eastward, replacing the original polygonal choir with today's straight east end. A fire in 1512–1519 led to a rebuild under Christoph von Lüneburg; the tower's spire was destroyed in 1698 and replaced in 1704 by the baroque lantern helm, and the roof over the choir was renewed in 2009.
The church was originally dedicated only to St Martin; the Marian patronage was added in 1453 as the cult of Mary spread. The late Gothic altarpiece, assembled in 1846 from two retables, shows the Coronation of Mary carved around 1530 in the workshop of Lübeck sculptor Claus Berg, whose altar in St Canute's Church, Odense, matches it in many details.
The best way to reach the church is on foot through Wittstock's town center, and the route is easy to find. It's best to visit during standard opening hours, as the church may occasionally close for private services.
The 68-metre tower carries a baroque lantern helm of 1704, built after the original spire was destroyed in 1698; Matthäus Merian the Younger's 1652 town view still shows the old pointed spire. The lower lantern now serves as a viewing platform.
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