Protestant Church Briesen

In hardly any other church in Brandenburg have medieval wall paintings been so completely preserved as in Briesen Protestant church. As in a picture book, the story of the Passion of Christ extends from the north wall via the east and south walls to the Resurrection. The west wall – liturgically assigned to “evil” – shows the world of the Antichrist through mythical creatures, fools and devilish figures. According to an inscription, the paintings were completed in 1486 for the consecration of the church. In the Middle Ages, this rich imagery would originally have served to bring to life stories from the Bible for those who could not read or write.
The care with which the paintings were planned can be seen on the name day of St. Mary on September 12: on this day between 9:28 a.m. and 9:48 a.m., a narrow strip of light falls on the image of the Annunciation of the Angel before Mary. Having previously been overpainted, it was not until 1963-9 that the paintings were uncovered again. There is nothing to protect them from the condition of the masonry, but measures are applied such as drainage at the base to attempt is made to preserve them as effectively as possible.
The church is open from April to September, on Sundays from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., bookings for guided tours can be placed through Annemarie Hotzkow, Telephone +49 35606-259, www.briesen-kirche-mit-fresken.de.