# Svētā Jāņa baznīca

> This file is a plain-text rendition of a page on mytuur.com, generated from the same data as the HTML version.

Canonical page: https://mytuur.com/en/city/riga/spot/sveta-jana-baznica/

Content updated: 2026-06-22

Svētā Jāņa baznīca is a Lutheran parish church in Riga’s Old Town, dedicated to John the Baptist. Its high Gothic stepped gable, span roof and small tower create a striking silhouette among the district’s historic streets. Inside, a late Gothic net vault rises above artworks linked to the church’s patron saint.

Dominican friars took over a small chapel here around 1234, then expanded it around 1330 for worship and parish life. Several building campaigns followed from 1587, while Joris Jorissen Frese shaped the interior and exterior between 1586 and 1589 with Tuscan-inspired classical details. A city fire damaged the church in 1677, and Johann Daniel Felsko designed the present tower in 1849. Latvian-speaking Lutherans have worshipped here since 1587, while the spacious interior and strong acoustics also suit organ concerts.

Look for the stained-glass window beside the high altar, installed around 1900, and the fifteenth-century sculptures of Saint Peter and Saint Paul on the eighteenth-century altar. A cross-shaped opening in the outer wall recalls a legend about two Dominican monks who were walled in alive while seeking sainthood.

- City: [Riga](https://mytuur.com/en/city/riga/)

## Photos

- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_StJohnsChurch_68750bbe622f9d68e0bc0544_0.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:St._John's_Church,_Riga_\(1940\)_-_View_from_the_northwest.jpg)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_StJohnsChurch_68750bbe622f9d68e0bc0544_1.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:St._John's_Church,_Riga_\(1940\)_-_View_through_the_single-nave_nave_to_the_choir_to_the_southeast.jpg)

Spots like this one are the stops myTuur strings into tours through Riga. In the app, each story begins where you stand: walk up to a spot and it starts, read it on screen or listen as you go, then follow the route to the next one.

## What is myTuur?

myTuur is a free city-guide app. Its tours are built from spots, and each spot carries a story that starts when you get there, to read or to listen to as you like.