Stadtkirche St. Marien, Gothic church in Kemberg, Germany.
St. Marien is a three-aisled Gothic hall church in brick, about 45 metres long and 22 metres wide, with five bays, a 5/8 apse and a star vault. Its 86-metre neo-Gothic tower stands slightly apart from the nave, linked by a connecting structure; 137 oak piles, each seven metres long, were driven into the ground for its foundation.
St. Marien was built between 1290 and 1340 and consecrated in 1346, after the provostry moved from flood-prone Pratau to Kemberg. Around 1375 Nikolaus von Riesenburg, later Bishop of Constance and Olomouc, was provost. In 1521 Bartholomäus Bernhardi, Luther's friend, became the first provost to preach Lutheran teaching and the first Protestant pastor to marry. Luther's body rested here on the night of 21–22 February 1546.
The church is also called Kirche Unser Lieben Frauen. Its 1590 stone pulpit shows the four Evangelists, and the stair carries Jacob's dream of the heavenly ladder. The octagonal baptismal font of 1617 is borne by an angel, and 35 panels on the south gallery depict scenes from Genesis.
The building opens daily from April through October, while winter visits need to be arranged in advance through the parish office. Check opening times beforehand and inform the parish about larger groups ahead of time.
Luther's body rested in this church overnight on 21–22 February 1546, on the journey from Eisleben to Wittenberg; the provost Bartholomäus Bernhardi had arranged it. Bernhardi, Luther's friend, was the first Protestant pastor to marry, in 1521, despite his priestly vow.
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