Hildesheim’s church and cathedral

Just south of Hannover, is one of northern Germany’s oldest cities. Hildesheim may only have a population of less than 100,000 people but it can boast more important historic sites than you might expect from somewhere of its size.

In a large part, you can give the credit for this to a man named Bernward.

He is now officially called Saint Bernward but back in the early part of the 11^th century he was the Bishop of Hildesheim.

In those days, the city was an important centre in the Holy Roman Empire and Bernward wanted to create monuments that were fitting of that status.

St Michael’s Church

The first construction he set in motion was St Michael’s Church. It was built in the early part of the 11^th century in the Romanesque style.

Its double choirs, six towers and elaborate cross-vaulted crypt are all considered to be excellent examples of its historic decorative features. In fact, the design would go on to be quite influential in the construction of Romanesque churches in Germany.

However, the highlight of St Michael’s Church is the painted ceiling from the 13^th century that shows a very abridged family tree of Jesus. It is the only flat church ceiling in Germany and the painting is extremely detailed.

You can find more information at the church’s official website.

St Mary’s Cathedral

The second building in his vision was the Cathedral of St Mary. It was built at a similar time, also in the Romanesque style.

Although it is architecturally important, it is the treasures within the building that make it so exceptional.

The Christ Column is one such treasure. It is a four-metre high column made of bronze that shows scenes from the New Testament of the Bible. It was cast around the year 1000AD and is regarded to be a masterpiece of Ottonian art.

The column complements one of the cathedral’s other famous artworks – the Bernward Doors. The bronze doors are almost five metres high and show scenes from the Book of Genesis on one side and from the life of Jesus on the other.

Together they represent the fall of man and the salvation of man. Each of the two doors was cast as a single piece and weighed about 1.8 tonnes.

The technology to make this artwork is considered to be extremely advanced for the time. The three-dimensional elements of the scenes are particularly impressive.

You can find more information on the official website of the cathedral.

St Michael’s Church, the Cathedral of St Mary and associated treasures were listed as a World Heritage Site in 1985.

The fact that, more than 900 years after they were originally conceived, they are still considered to be an important and influential cultural heritage says something.

It says that Bishop Bernward achieved his dream.

Visiting St Michael’s Church and the Cathedral of St Mary

Both buildings are within easy walking distance of each other. In fact, most of central Hildesheim is easy to navigate by foot.

The church and the cathedral are open to visitors during normal hours and when there are no religious services taking place.

Although the architecture of both sites is interesting make sure you also take time to appreciate the artworks. The ceiling painting in the church and the bronze doors and columns in the cathedral are the highlights but there’s much more to see as well.

Of course, there’s much more to see in Hildesheim than just the church and cathedral.

The historic marketplace is worth checking out and you might also consider the Roemer-und-Pelizaeus Museum which has a collection of ancient Egyptian and Peruvian exhibits.

Time Travel Turtle was supported by DB Bahn, the German National Tourist Board and Youth Hostels in Germany but the opinions, over-written descriptions and bad jokes are his own.