I am thoroughly enamored with Köln Cathedral! This gothic cathedral rises out of the center of Cologne, towering above everything else in town. It commands your attention from everywhere in the city and I could not stop examining the overall structure inside and out, as well as the infinite sculptures decorating nearly every surface. The cathedral is over 150m high and was begun in 1248. It wasn’t completely finished until 1880. Köln Cathedral is the second tallest church in Germany and the third highest in the world. It is truly massive and occupies about 8,000 square meters of floor space and can hold more than 20,000 people.
One of the most cherished treasures of the Cologne Cathedral is the relics of the Three Wise Men.
The shrine holds the bones of the three wise men from the bible. They were brought by pilgrims to Cologne in the middle ages. This area was closed when we visited due to several services surrounding the Corpus Christi holiday. We stopped in during this service and at first I was disappointed to not have more open access to all areas of the interior. Until the music began. With the afternoon light slanting in through the highest windows and a full orchestra playing the power and magic of the cathedral was overpowering.
Disaster struck when the Second World War commenced and Cologne was heavily bombed by allied aircraft. Being the tallest building in the city wasn’t a benefit as the twin spires were an easy target for the bombers, which left the cathedral in ruins. Remarkably, even though the entire city was basically destroyed after the bombings, the cathedral was only hit 14 times. Due to the way Gothi cathedrals are designed as a series of independent boxes, the cathedral was still standing even though the roof was especially damaged. This made it possible for it to be restored by 1956, bringing the cathedral back to its old glory!
Keeping up with the repairs of a cathedral this size is an ongoing task. I was delighted to spot a part of the workshop used to restore and recreate the decorative features and sculptures adorning the inside and outside of the cathedral. On the outside, newly restored pieces have a brighter, lighter color while all of the oldest pieces are nearly black. I wonder how one becomes so highly a skilled sculptor that they get picked to work on such an important project. What sort of knowledge of masonry and historical context is needed?
Comments