>> The Dome of Cologne

The Dome of Cologne, which was built in the period from 1248 until 1880, is known as a masterpiece of Gothic architecture. In its whole period of construction the original architect’s drawings had never been changed.

Up until its completion in the 19th century, the cathedral was the biggest building in the world. The draft of the western façade broke all conventions: as the biggest church façade of the world it was supposed to have a surface of 7,000 m² flanked by two powerful towers with a height of 156 metres each.
The reliquary for the relics of the three holy kings, which is the biggest reliquary of the Occident, is said to be an outstanding artistic work of the Middle Ages. The Ottonian Gero cross on top of the rood altar inside of the Dome is the first big cross of the western Occident: all triumphal crosses of medieval churches can be traced back to it. The dome has two big winged altar-pieces: the “Klarenaltar”, an altar from the 14th century with 36 paintings and 25 sculptures, as well as the altar of the city patrons created by Stephan Lochner, the master of Cologne.

The dome’s architecture mostly corresponds to plans from the Middle Ages. Some construction parts were made in a neo-Gothic style. Due to its size and the quality of the work the Dome became a crystallisation point of this kind of architecture.

In 1996, it was included in the list of the UNESCO world cultural heritage.

The Dome of Cologne
www.koelner-dom.de

Opening hours:

• Mo. – Su. 06:00 AM – 19:30 PM

Source: Tourismus&Congress GmbH Region Bonn/Rhein-Sieg/Ahrweiler