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| St John's Church, Tartu | |
|---|---|
| Parish Church of Saint John the Baptist, Tartu | |
Estonian:Tartu Jaani kirik | |
 | |
 St John's Church, Tartu | |
| 58°22′57.72″N26°43′12.72″E / 58.3827000°N 26.7202000°E /58.3827000; 26.7202000 | |
| Location | Tartu |
| Address | Jaani 5 |
| Country |  Estonia |
| Language | Estonian |
| Denomination | Lutheran |
| Previous denomination | Catholic |
| Website | jaanikirik |
| History | |
| Status | Active |
| Founded | 12th century |
| Dedication | John the Baptist |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Parish church |
| Heritage designation | Kultuurimälestis (no. 6916) |
| Designated | 16 September 1997 |
| Architectural type | Basilica |
| Style | Gothic |
| Years built | 14th century |
| Groundbreaking | 12th century |
| Specifications | |
| Number of towers | 1 |
| Tower height | 63 metres (206 ft 8 in) |
| Materials | Brick Terracotta (façade) |
| Bells | 3 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Southern Region |
| Deanery | Tartu |
| Parish | St John's in Tartu |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop | Joel Luhamets |
| Rector | Triin Käpp Naatan Haamer |
St. John's Church, Tartu (Estonian:Jaani kirik,German:St. Johanniskirche zu Dorpat[1]) is aBrick GothicLutheran church, one of the landmarks of the city ofTartu,Estonia. It is dedicated toJohn the Baptist.
Initially, St John's was aCatholic church, as the oldest parts of the current building originate from the 14th century. Before that, there has been a church building on the same place at least since the first half of the 13th century. Archaeological investigations have indicated that there may well have been a wooden church here in the 12th century. This is particularly remarkable because the national Christianisation did not take place until much later.[2] The red brick building has seen extensive changes, as it was largely rebuilt after both theGreat Northern War andWorld War II.Baroquechapels were added in 1746 and 1769. The church is now part of theEstonian Evangelical Lutheran Church.[3]
TheGreat Fire of Tartu started near the church in 1775 and the church and nearbyUppsala House were spared the destruction which destroyed nearly two hundred houses.[4]
At the end of the 19th century the church supplied primary education. The actressAmalie Konsa received her only schooling here.[5]
The most outstanding feature of St. John's is its wealth ofterracotta figurines surrounding the church's exterior. Originally, there were more than a thousand hand-made figurines, each different from the others; now, about 200 have survived. The large number of individual figurines has given birth to the hypotheses that they might have been modelled after citizens of Tartu; on the other hand, some of them wear crowns, which hints they might depict someone else.
Since 1999, St John's Church has two newbells namedPeetrus andPaulus after city's twopatron saints (respectively,St. Peter andSt. Paul).
The church is used by Tartu University-St. John's Congregation (Estonian:Tartu Ülikooli-Jaani kogudus). Before 2001, Tartu University Congregation and Tartu St. John's Congregation were standalone congregations.[6]
Media related toSt. John's Church, Tartu at Wikimedia Commons
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