St. Stephanus (Westerhever)
St. Stephanus is the Protestant church of the municipality of Westerhever in the district of North Friesland . It owes its name to St. Stephen , the deacon of the early Jerusalem community, who is also considered the first Christian martyr .
Building
The church was built on an almost 5 meter high terp . The tower from 1370 is the oldest of a total of 18 Protestant church buildings on the North Sea peninsula of Eiderstedt . While it has largely been preserved in its original design, the nave is a later building from 1804. According to tradition, stones from the destroyed Wogemannsburg were used to build the first nave and to strengthen the tower.
Interior
The church houses Eiderstedt's oldest baptismal font from the 12th century and Eiderstedt's oldest pair of candlesticks from Romanesque times. Above the baptismal font is a carved baptismal angel from 1815. The late Renaissance pulpit was originally located above the altar on the east wall and was moved to the south side in the sixties of the twentieth century. The light blue and red stalls in the church are reminiscent of those of the Hallig churches in terms of color and furnishings . The table of the preachers since the Reformation represents a specialty, which is continued up to the present day.
The altarpiece is a copy of the work “The Holy Family” by the Flemish painter Anthonis van Dyck , which was painted by the Westerhever-born artist Jacob Alberts . Albert's grave is on the south side of the church.
sightseeing
A tour of the church is possible. The church is open from March 15th to October 31st from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
see more
Street side view
View of the south side of the church
Massive support of the tower
Interior view, view of the gallery and organ
Web links
Coordinates: 54 ° 22 ′ 55.7 " N , 8 ° 40 ′ 33.5" E