Mălâncrav Fortified Church
Mălâncrav, Sibiu County · Transylvania
About Mălâncrav Fortified Church
Unlike most Saxon villages, Mălâncrav was not free Saxon land but the estate of the Hungarian noble family Apafi. The church was built in the early 14th century as a three-aisled basilica with a western tower, by Gregor, son of Nikolaus Apafi; the choir was rebuilt around 1400 in the International Gothic style. Before the Reformation it was a pilgrimage church dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
What makes it special is the painting: its walls carry the largest surviving ensemble of Gothic frescoes in Transylvania, a region where very few churches kept their pre-Reformation murals. In the 15th and 16th centuries the church was surrounded by walls; of the fortifications only a single plain enclosure wall remains today, and the defensive storeys above the nave and choir were lost after a 19th-century fire.
What you can see
The north wall of the nave is covered, in five registers, with around 53 scenes from the Old Testament and the lives of Christ and the saints, painted around the middle of the 14th century as a picture Bible for worshippers who could not read. In the choir, the vaults and walls are covered with International Gothic frescoes from around 1400, showing the Evangelists and scenes from the childhood of Christ.
In front of them stands the polyptych altarpiece given by Michael and Clara Apafi before 1469, the only one in Transylvania that survives unchanged from before the Reformation, in the place it was made for. The central panel shows the Virgin and Child, with the two donors kneeling at her feet beside their patron saints. Look out too for the Gothic choir stalls and the keystone bearing the Apafi coat of arms.
Good to know
The church has no opening hours: let the parish or the custodian know in advance so they can open it for you. Next to the church stands the Apafi manor house, restored by the Mihai Eminescu Trust, which takes in guests.
- The roughly 53 scenes painted on the north wall of the nave around the middle of the 14th century.
- The choir vaults, painted around 1400 with the Evangelists and scenes from the childhood of Christ.
- The polyptych altarpiece given by Michael and Clara Apafi before 1469, preserved unchanged in its place.
- The keystone bearing the Apafi coat of arms.
- The Apafi manor house in the village, restored by the Mihai Eminescu Trust.
Good to know before you go
- Getting there
By car: from the DN14 between Mediaș and Sighișoara, turn south at Laslea onto the DJ143A, a narrow asphalt road running ~12 km up the Mălâncrav valley. Sighișoara is ~25 km away (~35 minutes), Mediaș ~40 km (~50 minutes), Sibiu ~100 km (~1 hour 50 minutes) and Brașov ~140 km (~2 hours 30 minutes).
Public transport: we found no regular public transport to Mălâncrav. The nearest major railway station is in Sighișoara, from where you continue by taxi.
- Where to park
Sibiu County's tourism website lists a car and coach park at the church.
- Fees & discounts
The parish does not publish visiting charges.
- Facilities
toilets · car and coach park · viewpoint · Romanian and German spoken · accommodation in the Apafi manor house
Reviews
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