Cathedral Cologne
The Cathedral in Cologne Germany is one of the best known landmarks in Europe. It has been the unofficial symbol of Cologne throughout Germany and around the world for centuries. One of the most interesting things about the Cathedral is that it took over 600 years to complete. It was begun in the thirteenth century and not completed until 1880. The Cologne Cathedral was built in the styler of the day which is now known as gothic. That simply refers to the period of time, after the twelfth century, when this style was in vogue. The Cathedral features towers that over 500 feet high and the church itself is about 400 feet long and 200 feet wide. The Cathedral was commisioned by the first Christian Bishop of Cologne, Maternus, and it was built on the site of a fourth century Roman temple.Work began in 1248 and despite early optomism and rapid progress, construction slowly came to a standstill, and by the year 1560 only a torso had been built. Only when Cologne became part of the kingdom of Prussia did enthusiasm return to the project and construction resumed in 1824. The work was finally completed in 1880, 632 years after construction had began. Today there is almost always some repair and maintainance being carried out in some section of the building in order to try and preserve it from the ravages of wind, rain, and pollution. Inside the Cathedral there are a number of celebrated works of art. The most famous is the Sarcophagus of the Magi which dates from the thirteenth