Biserica Neagră

The Black Church dominates the historic centre of Brasov and is the largest Gothic-style church between Vienna and Istanbul. Construction began in the fourteenth century and stretched over more than a hundred years, raised by the Saxon community of the town then known as Corona. Its present name comes from the great fire of 1689, which blackened the stone walls. Inside there is a remarkable collection of Oriental carpets, donated by merchants across the centuries, together with a monumental organ of more than four thousand pipes, still used for concerts today.

The tower holds the heaviest bell in Romania. The church belongs to the Lutheran Evangelical community and remains a landmark of Saxon heritage in Transylvania. It is best visited together with the neighbouring Council Square in the old town.