St. Petri Church, Munster

The Saint Petri is a Catholic Church in Münster. This church is famous for having wonderful acoustics and is often used for sacred concerts, various official ceremonies, as well as for weddings. The church was built during a 7-year period (1590-1597) by architect and construction manager, Johann Roßkott.

The church has been designed as a basilica-type building without a transept. The exterior walls were built of red brick and light sandstone was used for the structural elements. Two slender bell towers flank the chancel.

On the inside, the two floors are divided into galleries by elegant arches. Access to these is provided by a low stair tower on the north and south sides. The overall impression of the building is more horizontal than vertical.

Stylistically, Saint Petri Church could be attributed to the harmonious combination of the Gothic and Renaissance styles. While the basic basilica structure and the buttresses appear backwards, the windows show mixed forms and the portals show pure Renaissance ornamentation. The whole structure of the church creates an impression of a sound and secure Holy dwelling.

Next to the church, on the Jesuitenweg, is the Dolomite sculpture, cut to size by the artist Ulrich Rückriem . The nine vertically positioned stones made of Anröchter dolomite form a counterpart to the buttresses of the church wall. The work, which was at times heavily criticized at first, was created for the Skulptur.Projekte in 1977 and is now owned by the city of Münster.