I know much has been written about Christiansfeld already, but I don't yet see a review from the perspective of one who has visited a component of the proposed extension to the World Heritage Site before visiting Denmark. In the spring of 2021 I took a road trip to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to learn more about the Moravian Church Settlements Tentative World Heritage Site extension to Christiansfeld. I came away from the trip with a much richer understanding of the role of the Moravian Church in early America, and the innovations they brought to the young country. The trip gave me high hopes for my visit to Christiansfeld when I traveled to Denmark last month, but unfortunately I left disappointed.

The most striking difference for me between Bethlehem and Christiansfeld was the lack of signage and information about the Moravian Church in Christiansfeld. Some of that can be attributed to the lack of an official tour at Christiansfeld, something I was able to arrange in Bethlehem. Perhaps because of that, but also because of the signs and onsite personnel, I gained a much better understanding about the history and impact of the Moravian Church, with its focus on mission and community and hard work, at Bethlehem than I did at Christiansfeld. Christiansfeld was built later than Bethlehem, but has many of the same components -- the simple and central church, the choir houses for men and women, God's Acre (the cemetery), the school for girls that was a novelty for its time. Christiansfeld, like Bethlehem, valued hard work and trades: in Bethlehem, the Moravians created one of the earliest industrial parks in America, and in Christiansfeld, the Moravians developed skills in stovemaking (the stoves can be seen in the Sisters' House) and baking honey cakes. However, had I not previously visited Bethlehem, I'm confident I wouldn't have learned what little I did about Christiansfeld by having questions ready to ask of the women working at the store in the Sisters' House; the lack of available information is something that really should be rectified.

It was Solivagant's recent review of Gracehill, United Kingdom -- another component of the proposed extension -- that helped bring into focus some of the mixed feelings I had about Christiansfeld. In Christianfeld's nomination package, they chose to focus on the city planning aspect to make a case that Christiansfeld was the best representation of a Moravian settlement, downplaying other sites because of their placement of the Brothers' or Sisters' Houses or of God's Acre; or for a lack of symmetry. By doing so, I can't help feeling like Christiansfeld's push to become a World Heritage Site on its own first, rather than as a transnational nomination, went against the Moravian Church's values, particularly when it comes to equality. Additionally, Christiansfeld appeared to be missing a component of the Moravian ethos that I easily learned about in Bethlehem -- the longstanding commitment to missionary outreach, which in Bethlehem started with the local Lenape people. In short, while Christiansfeld has a distinctive outward appearance, I feel like the site itself missed the heart of the Moravian Church, by not explaining how the church's principles of equality, communal living, hard work, and missionary outreach are reflected throughout the town. For that I give the edge to Bethlehem, and it makes me feel much stronger that Christiansfeld should both be extended as a trasnational World Heritage Site, and that Christiansfeld should improve its onsite communication to visitors about how its buildings and layout display the Moravian ethos. While I would give two stars to Christiansfeld, I would give an extra half star if it were extended to be a transnational site.

Logistics: Christiansfeld is probably easiest to reach by private transportation, although there are some options by train and bus from Copenhagen. Parking was relatively easy to find in the town.