St. Nicholas Church (Niguliste)

Medieval merchant church now a museum with an Ekkehard altarpiece and Dance of Death fragment

The Church of St. Nicholas, known in Estonian as Niguliste, was the merchant church of Tallinn's German trading community, built from the 13th century onward. It was severely damaged in the Soviet bombing of Tallinn in March 1944 and was deconsecrated; today it operates as a museum and concert hall managed by the Art Museum of Estonia.

The collection includes medieval religious art from Tallinn and the surrounding region, most notably the surviving fragment of Bernt Notke's Danse Macabre from around 1500 — one of the most significant medieval paintings in the Baltic states. Organ concerts are held on Saturdays and Sundays at midday. The exterior, with its stepped gable and blunt tower, is one of the most attractive in the lower Old Town.

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A story
The Dance of Death painting in the church's museum — called the Danse Macabre — was created by the Lübeck painter Bernt Notke around 1500. The original was about 30 metres long; only a fragment survives, depicting Death leading a procession of figures from pope to peasant. It was nearly destroyed in Soviet bombing raids in March 1944, when much of the Old Town burned, but firemen saved part of it.

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