Niguliste Church

One of the blessings of being on a mission in Eastern Europe is learning about the history of the area.  There is so much history in the Baltic that it is hard to ignore...not that we even try. No, Elder & Sister Davis happily succumb to any and all historical ventures we can find.  While staying at our hotel near Old Town, we read about a church, right around the corner, that has a fantastic display of original medieval art work.

Niguliste Church (dedicated to St. Nicholas) was originally built in the 13th Century, although most of what remains today is from the 15th Century. In 1524 during the Reformation, riots broke out and churches were often looted. According to an Estonian legend, Niguliste Church escaped being ransacked due to the efforts of the church warden who sealed the door with melted lead. Some of the church was destroyed by Soviet air raids in WWII but was restored after the war and the church was made into a museum.

Today, Tallinn's most impressive collection of medieval art is located in this church. Get ready for a tour of original 15th Century art work...

St. Nicholas  (part of the large altar at the front of the church)

This altar piece is in pristine condition...

Coats of Arms hang on the wall...

and below it is a baptismal font.

The Last Supper

You can see, this painting need extensive restoration...

The Passion alter piece:

The colors in these old paintings were still so vibrant...

There is a silver chamber in the church full of  ornate silverware that belonged to the various medieval guilds, such as the wealthy Brotherhood of Blackheads....

Sister Davis would hate to have the job of polishing all this silver....there were cases and cases full of silver artifacts.

 The Church has a pipe organ and concerts are often given here....

In the middle ages, the horror of the Bubonic plague (Black Death) was a very real part of life. It killed millions of people and everyone knew there was no escape from death. Fear of death was an everyday part of life.

  In the middle ages, art often portrayed death, so it is no wonder we saw many paintings related to dying. And there were many tombstones on the floor of the church where wealthy church patrons were buried.  Christians believed in an afterlife and wanted to honor and memorialize their dead. And thus the following rather grim pictures.....

Part of the15th Century frieze (below) Dancing with Death by Brent Notke, is considered one of Estonia's most prized works of art...as it is the only known surviving example of its genre on canvas.  Medieval paintings portrayed "death" as skeletons mocking men and women who tried to resist but always failed. Death is no respecter of persons.

Originally the frieze was 30 meters in length...but because of improper storage some parts were destroyed and now only about 7 meters remain. 

This coffin actually had a portrait of the deceased above it. The coffin was originally very ornate but most of the brass fixtures had been taken off of it.

And on those rather grim pictures...we finish our blog post for today.  But remember this scripture:

But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer;
 it is I; be not afraid.       Matthew 14:7

We do not need to fear death, for Christ overcame it with His resurrection and Latter-day Saints know there is life beyond the grave.