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It's Saturday and we left early on the 0837 train in order to reach Cologne for
the English language tour of the Cathedral. The station is less than a block to
the cathedral and our timing was good; we arrived at 1006 and the tour began at
1030. Our guide was very good, although there were so many tourists and tour
groups inside, her commentary couldn't always be heard well. Nevertheless, it
was a very interesting tour and you left the cathedral with a deeper
understanding of its history. Much more preferable to simply doing a walk
through.
Cologne Tourist Office
The cathedral with its two spires some 470 feet in height, has been the city's
most famous landmark for centuries. It took 632 years until construction of the
largest German cathedral was completed in 1880.
Cologne Tourist Office
For me, one of the most impressive things in the cathedral is the Shrine of the
Three Magi. It contains the relics of the Three Kings which were brought to
Cologne from Milan in 1164. The worship of these relics attracted so many
pilgrims to Cologne that the construction of a Gothic cathedral was started in
1248.
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From its magnificent entry to the gargantuan interior, the cathedral is indeed
a wonderful work of art.
I regret the low light levels made it difficult to get good interior shots
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There are over 4,000 square feet of medieval stained glass in the cathedral
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The finely carved Choir contain 104 seats
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Shrine of the Magi - a masterpiece begun by goldsmith Nicholas of Verdun (1181)
- is in a glass case behind the High Altar
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Altarpiece - Adoration of the Magi - the center panel shows adoration of the
Magi; the side panels portray the patron saints of the city of Cologne; St.
Ursula and her virgins are on the left, St. Gereon on the right. It was painted
by Stefan Lochner, circa 1440
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The 10th century Cross of Gero in the Chapel of the Cross, (below) is a fine
example of Ottonian art.
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A visit to the Cathedral alone is worth a trip to Cologne. There was so much we
didn't see in Cologne. It would take at least a week to cover the highlights,
and even then there would be more worth seeing
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