Page 479 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Germany

MECKLENBURG–L OWER POMER ANIA  477

chalice and relics from an earlier
Romanesque building, as well
as a statue of the Virgin Mary.
Beautiful tombs mark the
resting places of the rulers of
Mecklenburg, of the Danish
Queen Margaret, and Albrecht,
King of Sweden, who died in
1412. Visitors can walk around
the outside of the church which
has a pleasant lawn. Beyond you
can find a small octagonal
building, beautifully decorated
with glazed brickwork – this
lovely piece of 13th­century
architecture is the morgue.
A stroll around the health spa
is also recommended. Right in
Alter Schwede and Wasserspiele in the market square in Wismar its centre it has two early
19th­century pavilions with
16 public buildings. The most a huge rose window. The Chinese features – an ideal
beautiful house on the square is proportions of the interior and place for a coffee break.
the Alter Schwede (old Swede), the height of the vaulted main
built about 1380, with a nave measuring 37 m (121 ft) are Environs
protruding Gothic brick gable. captivating. Some of the interior Another adventure is a trip on
To the west of the market there fixtures and fittings came from the “Molli”, a narrow­gauge
are two churches, which act as other churches in the city, which railway that links Bad Doberan
sad examples of the GDR’s were either ruined or no longer with Heiligen damm and
neglect of its historical legacy. exist, including the so­ called Kühlungsborn, where there is a
The reconstruction of the Krämeraltar with a sculpture of 4­km (2­mile) long beach. On the
Georgenkirche, badly damaged the Beautiful Madonna and Child way, a little gem of 13th­century
in World War II, was (around 1420). The room by the country architecture, the church
begun in 1989, and tower has the most complete in Stefenshagen, calls for a
it will soon be cycle of frescoes in the region visit. On its south portal, see
returned to its (around 1450). the terracotta figures of the
former glory. The apostles. Across the presbytery
Marienkirche has runs a brickwork relief with
only one surviving 5 Bad Doberan mythological creatures.
tower – the ruined Road map D1. * 11,900. £
nave was blown up n Severinstr 6 (038203­621 54). R Doberaner Münster
in 1960. Nearby lies Klosterstraße 2. Tel (038203) 627 16.
the Fürstenhof, When Duke Henry Borwin was Open May–Sep: 9am–6pm daily (from
residence of the hunting deer, a passing swan 11am Sun); Mar, Apr, Oct: 10am–5pm
dukes of Wismar. reportedly shouted “Dobr Dobr” daily (from 11am Sun); Nov–Feb: 10am–
The north wing is (a good location) as the deer fell. 4pm daily (from 11am Sun). 8 daily.
the most interesting Borwin duly founded the most
– its Mannerist style important Cistercian monastery
was inspired by the of the Baltic region here. The
Italian town of Ferrari Münster was built in 1295–
and north European 1368, with a severe interior and
ceramic traditions a small bell, in accordance with
A pair of fauns from (such as Lübeck the order’s rules which stipulate
the portal of workshop). The that no tower should be built.
Fürstenhof in Wismar magnificent sand­ The interior is fascinating, its
stone portal is walls surfaced in red, with white
flanked by pairs of intertwined plasterwork and colourful
fauns. Nikolaikirche is a gem of ribbing. Most of the original
Wismar architecture. Spared in fixtures and fittings have
World War II, the façade of this survived almost intact. Among
late­Gothic basilica from the the treasures are a vast, gilded
14th and 15th centuries is panelled painting, produced in
decorated with glazed friezes of Lübeck in 1310, a 12­m (39­ft)
mythological creatures, saints Holy Sacrament made from oak, The monumental Cistercian Münster in
and, at the peak of the transept, a small cupboard holding the Bad Doberan

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