About the monastery
Cismar Monastery was founded in 1231. It is the largest and most significant monastery in Ostholstein and has been used over the centuries in many different manners – initially as a monastery, later also as the bailiff’s residence, a youth hostel or refugee camp. The monastery has belonged to the Schleswig-Holstein State Museums Foundation Schloss Gottorf since 1999. Despite this long and varied history, considerable parts of the complex have remained unscathed up to the present.
Cismar Monastery is one of the most important Lübeck early style Gothic and brick architecture North German buildings. This also means that the architects distanced themselves from the common large sandstone blocks – because they didn’t exist here – and used much smaller red bricks instead.
The Cismar Altar- one of the oldest surviving winged altars worldwide
The Cismar Altar, which is now as its original location in the monastery church quire - and can be seen within the course of a guided tour, is also famous. It is known as one of the oldest surviving winged altars in existence. The altar created by a Lübeck workshop around 1315 served the purpose of presenting the valuable monastery treasure of relics in the Middle Ages. The wide-ranging iconographic altar programme is devoted to the life of Christ as well as the congregation founder Benedikt von Nursia and the monastery patron Johannes.
In the summer months, the Museum of Art and Cultural History Schloss Gottorf presents special exhibitions in the castle gardens. Outside the season, the promotion circle invites to concerts, readings and further events. The monastery festival is the highlight with its artisan market, which is held annually on the second weekend in August and attracts ten thousands of visitors. Moreover, church services for the Protestant-Lutheran Church Congregation are held there regularly.
Visitors to the Cismar Monastery can expect a unique historic atmosphere, expressed both by the buildings and the beautiful gardens. The monastery café which is located in the former monks’ dining room also invites its visitors to its picturesque garden if the weather is good – to relax, to pause and enjoy. If you prefer more movement, you can take the footpaths to the Baltic Sea, which is only five kilometres away, and familiarise yourself with the surroundings.
