Biertan

The Site of Biertan with the Fortified Church and a Part of the Town Photo Album
I. PRECISE LOCATION II. MANAGEMENT III. IDENTIFICATION OF THE ASSET IV. JUSTIFICATION FOR INSCRIPTION ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST
I. PRECISE LOCATION a. Country: România. b. State, Province or Region:Transilvania, Târnava Mare district. c. Name of the asset: The site of Biertan with the fortified church and a part of the town. d. Exact location on map, and indication of geographical coordinates: - Latitude: 24º east, - Longitude: 46º north.
Justification - Location - Identification - Introduction
II. MANAGEMENT a. Ownership: It belongs to the evangelical community of this locality, that is in its turn part of the Evangelical Church, governed by the High Consistory of the Evangelical Church of Romania. b. Legal status: It is the property of the religious community. The church is used as a place of worship. c. National institution(s) with management authority: Ministry of Culture. Department of Historic Monuments, 1 Piata Presei Libere, 71321 Bucharest. The High Consistory of the Evangelical Church of Romania, 2400 Sibiu, 4 General Magheru street. d. Associated national institution(s) with management authority (if the case): Department Commission of Historic Monuments of South Transylvania, Sibiu, Brukenthal Museum, 4 General Magheru street.
Justification - Location - Management - Introduction
III. IDENTIFICATION OF THE ASSET
a. HISTORY b. DESCRIPTION AND INVENTORY
a. HISTORY The site is relevant for the civilisation of the Transylvanian Saxons. They were communities of craftsmen, agricultural workers and merchants who had come mostly from Rhineland. They were colonised in the 12th-13th centuries under the protection of the Hungarian Crown to the east of the Carpathian basin. For 800 years they have been developing a remarkable civilisation that intermingles, on the one hand, traditions brought from Western Europe, and, on the other, adaptations and borrowings from cultural areas of Eastern Europe. The possibility to save the original traditions can be explained by the privileged social and legal status (hospites regis), as well as by a relative isolation from the regions of origin at the moment when the Ottoman power was established in the Middle Danube area. (16th-17th centuries). The site was first mentioned in documents in 1283. In 1397 Biertan was named "oppidum"-bourg, and in 1418 the king gave the locality the "right to the sword" (jus gladii). From 1572 to 1867 Biertan was the residence of the evangelical bishops of Transylvania. The stages of urban development from the 13th to the 19th centuries are reflected in the patterns of the streets of this town, and in the arrangement of its houses and properties. Many buildings from the 16th-18th centuries, entirely preserved, are arranged around a central square. Above older caves there are authentic interiors from the 18th century, with stuccowork and original wood decoration. The church is mentioned for the first time in 1412, and was raised on an earlier edifice. The late Gothic church that constitutes the core of the city was built in the first quarter of the 16th century. A few inscriptions from that period still exist. The year 1522 is inscribed on a votive inscription above the triumphal arch, while the year 1523 is incised on one of the pews of the choir. These two data probably mark the end of the church works. The church underwent certain transformations and additions over the next centuries (the north and south doors in the Baroque style, the organ tribune and the pulpit baldaquin). It is remarkable, however, that the interior has a very unitary style, as the main pieces of furniture and the stone carvings date from the same period with the architecture (pulpit from 1518, altar table from 1483-1515, pews from 1516-1523, late Gothic baptismal fonts, etc.). Ullrich of Brasov, a stonecutter, and Johannes Reichmuth of Sighisoara are two of the craftsmen who worked here. The most notorious personality is the priest Johannes, whose name or initial appears in more corners of the church interior. The fortifications are older than the church. More construction stages can be remarked: the first precinct, dating from the 14th century, the second one almost from the same period with the church, and the third one from the 16th and the 17th centuries. The denominations of the defence towers of the fortified precincts are mentioned in the general plan.
Location - a.History - Management - Justification - Introduction
b. DESCRIPTION AND INVENTORY The site stands on a mound in the middle of the town. Remarkably, the aspect of the locality has not been altered by more recent out of scale buildings, so that there is still a harmonious relationship between the heritage site, the surroundings, and the landscape of winding low hills with vineyards and orchards. On the mound peak there is the church surrounded by the first precinct with its four towers. At the foot of the mound there is the second precinct marked by a series of arches that sustain the watch road. To the east, south and west of the site there is the third tower-fortified precinct. The buildings are to a large extent made of brick, excepting the door and window frames and a few stone vault grooves. The inner and outer surfaces are plastered and painted. Over the last decade the restorations revealed many vestiges of sgraffito decorations and mural painting, partially restored. Remarkable inner frescoes of the Catholic tower are yet to be restored and displayed. The church inventory includes a late Gothic retable in the shape of a polyptych with 24 panels and three carvings, as well as a precious corona. The church pews bearing marquetries, the work of the Johannes Reichmuth carpenter's workshop of Sighisoara, are remarkable. The pulpit, probably the work of a stonecutter, Ullricus of Brasov, is characteristic of the transition period from the Gothic to the Renaissance. The vestry door, itself bearing marquetries and endowed with an ingenious locking system, a remarkable achievement of mediaeval locksmith's work, represents a piece of a particular value: in 1900 it was on display at the world exhibition in Paris. The seven carpets of Asia Minor, other fabrics including the guild standards, the baptismal fonts and the north, south and west doors are also exquisite pieces. Inside the city there is also a lapidarium bearing tombstones of Transylvanian Lutheran bishops. They are particularly interesting, not only artistically (end of late Renaissance), but also historically, as representations of certain outstanding personalities of Transylvanian culture. At the same time, there is an important collection of original documents (15th-17th centuries), silverware and other works of decorative art significant for the civilisation of the Transylvanian Saxons.
Identification - Location - Management - Introduction
IV. JUSTIFICATION FOR INSCRIPTION ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST
1) MOTIVATION, 2) EVALUATION, 3) AUTHENTICITY.
CULTURAL ASSET 1) The reasons why the asset is considered to meet one or more cultural heritage requirements, and, if the case, a comparative analysis of similar properties are presented below. The exceptional value of the Biertan site resides in the fact that it is one of the most representative fortified churches, a monument of architecture which reflects the originality of the Saxon way of life. Obviously, during the Middle Ages there were fortified churches in other parts of Europe. However, it is in Transylvania that this architectural pattern developed at the full, and it is here that many such masterpieces can be found. The fortified churches of the Transylvanian Saxons have influenced the architecture of neighbouring regions. They are landmarks of the Transylvania, as their relationship with the places where they were raised is very interesting from the point of view of the way social relations are perceived (in other words, the fortified church is the embodiment of the social, cultural and political pattern of a community whose members are virtually equal). The fortified church of Biertan has acquired a historic significance also by the fact that here, for three centuries, the Lutheran bishopric of Transylvania had its headquarters, and many personalities are related to this place (Georgius Krauss, Daniel Neugeboren, Johan Michael Salzer). A possible comparison that can be drawn between Biertan and other fortified churches of Transylvania (Wurmlotth, Agetheln, Tartlau) and of the rest of Europe may be useful. Biertan may be singled out as a relatively large site that has preserved much of its original form. It is relevant that the framework of the monument has been preserved, and it bears the mark of the architectural pattern specific of the period of the finest artistic splendour. Besides, the geographical area and the surroundings have beautiful landscapes, while industrial pollution in this zone is practically non-existent, because the plant of Copsa Mica is situated at a large distance.
Location - Management - Identification - 1) Reasons - Introduction
2) EVALUATION of the present state of conservation of the asset as compared with similar assets situated elsewhere: as compared with other monuments of this kind the site of Biertan is very well preserved.

3) DATA ON THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE ASSET The value of the site from the point of view of art history is given by the amount of original architectural elements and objects that have been preserved. At the same time one can remark the stylistic unity, as most objects on display in the church date from 1500 - 1525.