Karlsruhe: Lutheran Church

1905 – 1907

Architects: Robert Curjel, Karl Moser

Durlacher Allee 23, Karlsruhe, Germany

The Lutheran Church in Karlsruhe was built between 1905 and 1907, based on designs by the architects Robert Curjel and Karl Moser. It is located in the eastern part of the city.

Church building

The exterior of the Lutheran Church is characterised by large wall surfaces divided only by a few windows.

Like the church itself, the massive 53-metre-high tower is constructed of yellow Palatine sandstone.

The use of roughly carved ashlars gives the church the appearance of being hewn from a single block of stone.

The church is part of a coherent ensemble comprising the church, rectory and parish rooms.

Martin Luther

At the base of the bell tower is a monumental relief of Martin Luther preaching, created by the sculptor Oskar Kiefer.

Interior

The interior of Luther Church consists of a low, vaulted central room which opens into four flat, enclosed cross arms with galleries in all directions.

The altar, pulpit and organ are aligned along the central axis of the room. Behind the pulpit, the relief by Hermann Binz depicts a scene from the Sermon on the Mount. The mosaics are by Heinrich Altherr.

The pews are arranged in the corners to allow visitors to sit with an unobstructed view of the preacher.

Restoration

The church building was restored beginning in 1946 after being destroyed during World War II. Unfortunately, the original windows by Max Laeuger and the organ by Heinrich Voit were not preserved.

New windows featuring stained glass paintings by Klaus Arnold were installed in 1961, and the interior was restored in accordance with monument preservation requirements in 1984.