“Boppard”:http://wasleys.org.uk/eleanor/otherholidays/rhine/b_boppard/town/index.html is an attractive small town on the Middle Rhine and dominated by the twin towers of St Severus Church with their white plaster and stone walls. It has a large apse at the east end and entry is through the west door.
There has been a church on this site since the C5th when the Roman soldiers were withdrawn and a church was built over the Roman bathhouse. The baptismal font from this church still survives below the nave and its position is marked by black lines on the nave just inside the west door. The present baptistry is in the south transept. The present building dates from the C13th and is one of the best examples of a late Romanesque church in Rhineland.
Inside it is a very tall and narrow church with solid square pillars supporting round arches. Above is a triforium with the clerestory windows above. All the arches and ceiling ribs are painted.
The wall painting on the north arcade tells the story of St Severus, a weaver who became bishop of Ravenna in Italy.
Steps lead up to the chancel apse with a C13th triumphal crucifix hanging from the ceiling. This is unusual as it shows Christ crowned as a victor over death rather than the more usual suffering image of Christ.
At the end of the north aisle is a small chapel with a C13th carving of the Virgin with the Christ Child.
The brightly coloured stained glass window in the south aisle were made by a local artist in the late 1980s.
This is a most attractive church and is open daily between 9-5. It is well worth visiting.
There are more pictures “here.”:http://wasleys.org.uk/eleanor/otherholidays/rhine/b_boppard/severus/index.html
