19.06.2009
The Transylvanian castle churches - EBS supports conservation of European cultural heritage

The German ethnic group, whose settlement took place in Transylvania in the 12th and 13th century, has left a valuable legacy: a group of monuments, characteristic for the Transylvanian region which designates, to this day, the landscape.

Particularly coming from the Franconian and the Rhineland region the Germans, called Saxons, should not only settle the width of Transylvania, but also play a major role in defending against the continuous invasion of Eastern ethnic groups. So, in the early Middle Ages they built a network of fortified stone castles and churches.

These are from a cultural and architectural point of view unique in Europe and belong to the European cultural heritage. This cultural heritage is not only a symbol of the Saxony’s culture, but represents the entire European world and way of life in the Middle Ages.

EBS is actively committed to the preservation and restoration of the today’s 250 castle churches and approximately equal number of village churches in the Transylvanian space. City castles emerged around the up until now major Transylvanian cities Sibiu, Brasov, Bistritz, Sighisoara, Medias and Mühlbach.

EBS supports an initiative for the preservation of these monuments, which cares about the protection of artistic elements: interior design, murals, furniture and wooden items. Through the effort of EBS, for instance, the restoration of the exterior wall paintings on the church in Durles or the repair of the roof of the church in Schmiegen and of the XV. century Gothic church chairs is possible.

The wealth of iconographic images as well as the painted surface let the wall paintings of the Durleser Church appear unique among the medieval Transylvanian wall paintings. The conservation status of the paintings is precarious, since large areas are demolished. Also the medieval church benches in Schmiegen are in a worrying state due to both pest infestation and external, direct interventions.

These necessary repairs maintain those elements of cultural heritage and the world which they represent for future generations.