Marienkirche Berlin: the city's oldest church and its Dance of Death

Updated on October 5, 2026

The Marienkirche (St. Mary's Church), Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 8, stands on the esplanade at the foot of the TV Tower, near Alexanderplatz. This Gothic brick church, whose origins go back to the 13th century, is the oldest church in Berlin still used for worship; it is now a Protestant church. It houses a famous fresco, the "Dance of Death" (Totentanz) of the late 15th century, one of the oldest works of art in the city. Admission is free. The church is open every day from 10:00 to 18:00 (shorter hours are possible in winter). Allow half an hour to forty minutes.

Highlights

The church on the esplanade

Standing alone in the open space that stretches to the Rotes Rathaus, the Marienkirche makes a striking contrast with the East German-era buildings. Its red-tiled roof is overtopped by a tower with a green summit, crowned with neo-Gothic pinnacles by Carl Gotthard Langhans in the late 18th century. In front of the entrance stands a monument to Martin Luther, unveiled in 1895.

The Dance of Death

Beneath the tower, in the tower hall (Turmhalle), a long painted band some twenty metres long shows people of every condition, from pope to child, led by skeletons. It was painted after the plague epidemic of the late 15th century, then rediscovered under a coat of plaster in 1860. Our illustration is a reconstruction of the whole; the original can be seen on site, where the tower hall has reopened with a new presentation of the fresco.

The Baroque pulpit

In the nave, Andreas Schlüter's pulpit, from the early 18th century, is a masterpiece of Berlin Baroque, in alabaster and marble.

The font and the organ

Among the oldest objects in the church is a 15th-century bronze baptismal font. The organ by Joachim Wagner, built in 1721, is still used for concerts: check the church's programme.

Practical info

Tips

Admission is free, but you cannot visit during services, concerts and events: check the calendar on the church's website. The visit combines easily with the TV Tower, Alexanderplatz and the medieval Nikolaiviertel, all five to ten minutes' walk away; our guide to Mitte suggests a route, and our comparison of churches and places of worship places it among the others.

How to get there

Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 8, 10178 Berlin. S-Bahn S3, S5, S7 and S9, and U-Bahn U2, U5 and U8, Alexanderplatz station. Tram M4, M5 and M6, Spandauer Straße stop. More details in our guide to public transport in Berlin.