At this point the chancel, the lower section of the South Tower with bell tower
as well as the long nave and the cross nave were completed up to the lower
arcades. The North Tower was almost completely nonexistent. For more than
300 years, the city's panorama was dominated by the mighty torso with a huge
building crane on the incomplete South Tower.
Around the turn of the 19th century the supporters of the German Romantic
movement reawakened public interest in the completion of the Cathedral
thanks to their enthusiasm for the Middle Ages. Continuation and completion
of the building now became a matter of national interest to the Germans. In
1842 King Friedrich Wilhelm IV laid the foundation stone marking the
continuation of building work. The Cathedral was completed in 1880 - in
accordance with the plan originating from the Middle Ages - in a record time
of just 38 years.
It is nothing short of a miracle that, although badly damaged, Cologne
Cathedral survived the Second World War in spite of extensive bombing.
Nowadays the main factors affecting the Cathedral are weather and
environmental influences. Over 80 stonemasons, glaziers, roofers and other
specialists are constantly at work on the maintenance and restoration of the
Cathedral building.
The stone mass seems to rise, almost weightlessly, up to the 43m-high
baldachin-style arches. The narrow main nave that leads to the chancel is
accompanied by two side naves. In the northern side nave, the light shines
through five spectacular glass windows, which stem from the later years of
Cologne glass painting (1507/1509).
- In 2007,
0 3 a - totally new lighting concept was created in the south cross nave of
the Cathedral. The light, plain glass window that had replaced a window
destroyed during the Second World War was removed. Gerhard Richter, an
artist living in Cologne, created a new work of art out of endless coloured
squares covering the 100m2 area, which is in tune with the visions of the
master builders from the Middle Ages.
The crossing features the modern bronze altar by Elmar Hillebrand (1960).
Behind this lies the high chancel with the choir ambulatory - one of the finest
sanctuaries in the Western world. The choir stalls have 104 seats making them
the largest in Germany. The chancel paintings were added in around 1340.
Above these, you will see the older chancel pillar sculptures of Jesus, Mary and
the 12 Apostles. In addition to the Adoration of the Magi, the entire circle of
glass windows in the upper floor of the central nave depicts a further 48 royal
figures.
The foundation stone of the Gothic Cathedral was laid on 15
August 1248 on the celebration of the Assumption of the Virgin
Mary. Apparently the Old Cathedral was no longer sufficiently
representative to house the mortal remains of the Three Kings,
which Archbishop Rainald von Dassel brought back to the
cathedral city in 1164 from the conquered city of Milan. These
relics made the Cathedral one of the most important pilgrimage
destinations in Europe. In the early 16th century, building was
stopped - partly due to lack of money, partly due to lack of
interest.
Behind the high altar, the Shrine of the Three Kings rises up; the relics of
Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar-the city patrons of Cologne-rest here
alongside the relics of Saints Felix and Nabor and Saint Gregory of Spoleto.
This impressive work of medieval gold craftsmanship surpasses all other
shrines in the Western world in terms of size and grandeur.
On the way to the choir ambulatory, you pass under the organ loft. The Gero
Crucifix hangs in the crucifix chapel and is the oldest remaining large
sculpture of the crucified Christ this side of the Alps. The oldest window in the
Cathedral (from around 1260) can still be found in its original position in the
Axis Chapel (Chapel of the Three Kings). It shows topically related scenes from
the New and Old Testaments in two parallel rows.