Saint Demetrius Tower

Outside the Votive Church stands the Saint Demetrius Tower, the oldest architectural relic of the city. The remains of the church erected in honour of Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki living in the 4th century is called the Dömötör Tower by the people of Szeged. Its foundation is from the 11th century, its lower, Roman style part is from the 12th century while its early gothic levels were probably built in the 13th century. During the course of the construction of the Votive Church, the tower, almost pulled down, could survive as the baptizing chapel of the church. It was that time when Vilmos Aba-Novák painted the frescos “Baptism of Christ” on the walls of the tower. In the orders of arches of the doorway stones from the roman era were inserted, above them can be found the 12th century Stone Lamb, the oldest sculptural monument of the city. On the first floor of the tower an interactive exhibition area is available where visitors can be acquainted with the history of baptism, and on the second floor the architecture history of the Saint Demetrius Tower is presented by an interactive exhibition.