2021-06-29 13h38 Harman: Biserica evanghelică fortificată
Originally a Romanesque Basilica with 3 naves was under construction by the Order of Teutonic Knights installed in the Land of Bârsa in the first decades of the 13th century in Feldioara, Prejmer, Râșnov and Sânpetru. However, the first documentary attestation of the establishment dates from March 21, 1240, 15 years after the expulsion of the Teutonic Knights from these territories by the Cistercians of Carta. Most of the construction elements of this basilica have been preserved. The interior of the church is quite heterogeneous, so that in addition to the Cistercian elements (the four-lobed windows pierced above the pointed arched ones) several elements from various other periods are preserved. The central nave was vaulted in 1595, after a fire which devastated both the town and the fortress. The eastern side has a beautiful portal with a late Gothic trilobed arched doorway.
In the 15th century, the community tried to transform the basilica in Gothic style, but the work did not continue beyond the belfry of the bell tower with its 32 meters high. On the ground floor, the bell tower resembles a cross vaulted portico with a typical Cistercian profile. The third level has three niches with ramparts, like the next one, the bells being on the fifth level. The upper levels were added two centuries later and are constructed of limestone tuff. The guard path lasted until the 18th century. An interesting element is the clock with a single hand, which indicates the hours and dates of the 16th century. The turrets at the corners of the roof signified, as in the case of other churches, the authority of “ius gladii” that Harman possessed.
The fortification consisting of a triple cordon of concentric curtain walls surrounding the church was built in the 15th century. The shorter outer wall, only 4.5 meters high, was intended to protect the base of the enclosure. At the same time, it demarcated the water ditch that surrounded the fortress. The third string of curtains which surrounded the water ditch is no longer preserved. The inner wall, 12 meters high, had seven towers. The whole enclosure was covered with a guard rail which communicated with all the towers. The northern part was a swampy area, so the fortress wall was lower and was only equipped with springs. In front of the entrance was a barbican with two harrows, and above it was the butchers' tower. At the beginning of the 17th century, the short entrance passageway was erected, like that of Prejmer.
2021-06-29 13h38 Harman: Biserica evanghelică fortificată
Originally a Romanesque Basilica with 3 naves was under construction by the Order of Teutonic Knights installed in the Land of Bârsa in the first decades of the 13th century in Feldioara, Prejmer, Râșnov and Sânpetru. However, the first documentary attestation of the establishment dates from March 21, 1240, 15 years after the expulsion of the Teutonic Knights from these territories by the Cistercians of Carta. Most of the construction elements of this basilica have been preserved. The interior of the church is quite heterogeneous, so that in addition to the Cistercian elements (the four-lobed windows pierced above the pointed arched ones) several elements from various other periods are preserved. The central nave was vaulted in 1595, after a fire which devastated both the town and the fortress. The eastern side has a beautiful portal with a late Gothic trilobed arched doorway.
In the 15th century, the community tried to transform the basilica in Gothic style, but the work did not continue beyond the belfry of the bell tower with its 32 meters high. On the ground floor, the bell tower resembles a cross vaulted portico with a typical Cistercian profile. The third level has three niches with ramparts, like the next one, the bells being on the fifth level. The upper levels were added two centuries later and are constructed of limestone tuff. The guard path lasted until the 18th century. An interesting element is the clock with a single hand, which indicates the hours and dates of the 16th century. The turrets at the corners of the roof signified, as in the case of other churches, the authority of “ius gladii” that Harman possessed.
The fortification consisting of a triple cordon of concentric curtain walls surrounding the church was built in the 15th century. The shorter outer wall, only 4.5 meters high, was intended to protect the base of the enclosure. At the same time, it demarcated the water ditch that surrounded the fortress. The third string of curtains which surrounded the water ditch is no longer preserved. The inner wall, 12 meters high, had seven towers. The whole enclosure was covered with a guard rail which communicated with all the towers. The northern part was a swampy area, so the fortress wall was lower and was only equipped with springs. In front of the entrance was a barbican with two harrows, and above it was the butchers' tower. At the beginning of the 17th century, the short entrance passageway was erected, like that of Prejmer.