St. Nicholas Church (''St. Nikolai Kirche'') is a church in the city of Burg on the German Baltic island of

Fehmarn Fehmarn (, da, Femern; from Old Wagrian Slavic "''Fe More''", meaning "''In the Sea''") is an island in the Baltic Sea, off the eastern coast of Germany's northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is Germany's third-largest island, after Rüg ...

Description

The church is on the island of Fehmarn in the Baltic. The island is joined by a bridge to the mainland, and there are plans to link the island by a submerged tunnel to Denmark. There is a bronze font in the church which dates from 1391. It is not certain how it arrived at the church, but the casting carried an inscription which records that the font was given by

Korp Benno Maria Korp (born Maria Matilde; 14 January 1955 – 5 August 2005) was a Portuguese-born Australian woman reported missing for four days and later found, barely alive, in the boot of her car on 13 February 2005. She spent a short time in a com ...

the

Bishop of Arosia A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

. Another significant item of the 14th century is a

polyptych A polyptych ( ; Greek: ''poly-'' "many" and ''ptychē'' "fold") is a painting (usually panel painting) which is divided into sections, or panels. Specifically, a "diptych" is a two-part work of art; a "triptych" is a three-part work; a tetrapty ...

which has fourteen panels today but it is believed to have lost further panels. In addition there is another stone font that was rediscovered when nearby buildings were being built. It has since had a base added, and small restorations have also been made.St Nikolai Kirche
st-nikolai-kirche-burg.de, retrieved 30 March 2014 The date that the church was started is unknown, but it has been estimated at 1230, making the building the second oldest church on the island. The first construction may have been in 1250. The church was dedicated to

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...

, who is the patron saint of sea travellers and grain sellers. The size of the church was increased in 1470 and in 1508 the tower of the church was built.History of an Island
fehmarnfilm.jimdo.com, retrieved 2 April 2014 Amongst the church's artefacts on display is a large chest that was used for storing the parishioners contributions. After each service the collection bag would be emptied into the chest, but it would only be opened once a year. When it was opened then the funds would be distributed to those in need.

References

Burg Nikolai Burg Fehmarn Nikolai Fehmarn {{SchleswigHolstein-struct-stub