Transilvania - tururi private si transport obiective turistice Brașov la Biserica Fortificată Biertan.

The medieval architectural complex of Biertan consists of the church and the fortification belt, all located in the center of the settlement, on a hill. The hall-type church occupies the central part of the complex, being built between 1490 and 1520 in the late Gothic style, being the last in Transylvania to be erected in this style. A monumental, large-sized construction, it has three halls of equal heights. The entrance is through three gates: western, northern and southern. The church's polyptych altar, the largest in the country with its 28 painted panels, was made between 1483 and 1513. The pulpit, carved in stone, from 1500, is the work of the craftsman Ulrich from Brașov, with a strong South German influence. The choir stalls are characterized by George Oprescu as follows: "The furniture is of a rare and very valuable type. The stalls, that is, the choir stalls, from the beginning of the 14th century, are decorated with bands of Gothic ornaments... It is the decoration that we find on furniture of this kind in Germany and Switzerland, in no way inferior to them, so we can say that in Biertan there are stalls, made here, by Transylvanian carpenters, that could appear in any great museum of applied art".[3] The sacristy door, with a complicated system of 19 locks, was made by local craftsmen in 1515, being awarded at the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris. It constitutes a representative example of medieval Saxon manufacture, due to the inlays and the original locking system, which still functions today. The surrounding fortifications are considered the strongest in Transylvania, from a peasant fortress. It has three rows of walls, 6 towers and 3 bastions built in different stages starting from the 14th century. At the top it has a defense corridor, the clock and the bells. The "mausoleum" tower is located to the northeast and has a mausoleum on the ground floor which houses, since 1913, the tombs of the prelates of this church.

The slabs were made by Nikolaus Elias from Sibiu. The Catholic Tower, located on the south side, housed the chapel reserved for Catholics who had not converted to the Reformation. There is an organ in the church, the oldest information about it dating from 1523, when the organist Bartholomäus is mentioned. After several restorations, the current organ with 1290 pipes, 2 keyboards, pedalboard and 25 registers was achieved, which dates from 1869 and was made by the master Carl Hesse from Vienna.[4] In the past, in the eastern bastion there was a "prison", where couples (husband and wife) who were arguing and intended to divorce were imprisoned for two weeks. In the small room, with a small table and a single bed, the Saxon community provided them with a single plate, a single cutlery and a single water jug. In those circumstances, only one couple remained steadfast in their initial decision to divorce, all the other couples leaving there reconciled, without resorting to justice.[4] In the southwest was the Slăninilor Tower. In the 16th century, the third belt of walls was built on the east, west and south sides of the fortress. The Prison Tower was located in the northwest, but in 1840 it was demolished to build a school. On the third belt, the Gate Tower was built on the south side and the Weavers' Tower on the west side. Access to the interior to the church is via a covered staircase, 100 m long, which starts from the central square of the village, next to the guard tower.

At the top of the stairs, near the church, you can see a large boulder, on which, on Sundays, those who had "done evil" during the week were placed, so that they could be seen by the entire community. This was considered a means of educating them and integrating them into the community of the settlement. Today, this old Saxon settlement is known for its fortress church, included in 1993 on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The fortress church here, dedicated to Saint Mary, was restored with donations made by Biertan natives spread across Europe, the United States of America and Australia. The head of the restoration project, architect Hermann Armeniu Fabini, was awarded the "Europa Nostra" medal in 1991.[5] In 1775, near Biertan, in the "Chimdru forest", a ritual object was discovered, known as the Donarium of Biertan, often invoked to argue the presence of a Latin-speaking Christian population in 4th-century Transylvania.

Polyptych Altar

The altar, located in the northern part of the church, is built in the late Gothic style and has the form of a triptych. The altar was built by craftsmen from Nuremberg and Vienna between 1483 and 1513. It contains 28 paintings with scenes from the life of Jesus Christ, scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary, the scene of the Baptism of the Lord, the scene of the Circumcision and various other paintings representing saints of the Catholic cult. The uniqueness of this altar is given by the large number of paintings. Initially, during the period when the church served the Roman Catholic cult, in the middle of the altar there was a statue of the Virgin Mary, who was the patron saint of the church. In its place there is now a crucifix.[4] The main part of the altar consists of a crucifix representing Jesus Christ, with the Virgin Mary and the Apostle John, as well as Mary Magdalene, who embraces the cross.[6] The altar as a whole is 489 cm high and 567 cm wide. The central altar measures 211 x 132 x 41 cm (height x width x depth). The wings of the altar measure with frame 211 x 139 cm (height x width). The painted surface of the fixed intermediate panels measures 94 x 50 cm each. The panels on the inside measure 94 x 59 cm, those on the outside 94 x 124 cm. The fixed wing pieces measure 211 x 140 cm. The predella is 106 cm high and 270 cm wide. Its central panel measures 97 x 67 cm (painted surface: 80 x 51 cm). The wings of the predella measure 97 x 67 cm (painted surface: 80 x 51 cm). The sculptures in the altar are 80.5 cm (Mary), 80 cm (John), 65 cm (Mary Magdalene) and 100 cm (Christ).

The summer program is structured as follows:

Daily: 10:00 - 19:00 (with lunch break between 13:00 and 14:00)