Cologne Cathedral

Justification for inscription: "The monument is of outstanding universal value being an exceptional work of human creative genius, constructed over more than six centuries and a powerful testimony to the strength and persistence of Christian belief in medieval and modern Europe."

Already in 1248, the construction of the Cathedral was started. Until 1560 the work on this Gothic Cathedral was in progress, but an accumulation of problems prevented it to be finished.

Only during the 19th century the Cathedral was finally completed, stimulated by Emperor William I. Not anymore as a pure construction to honor God, but also as a national Prussian symbol.

Year	Decision	Comments
2006	Removed from Danger list
2004	In Danger	Visual impact of high-rise building projects
1996	Inscribed	Reasons for inscription

Visit February 2000

The most striking points of this cathedral are its sheer size and the space it takes in the center of Cologne: you literally cannot avoid it.

The wonderfully decorated windows add some color to the otherwise gray cathedral. But that impression can be somewhat influenced by the dreadful weather I experienced there.

Reviews

Naglaa (Netherlands):
I have lived in Europe (the Netherlands) for the last 13 years. For me the Cathedral in Köln is the main attraction that has grasped my attention in the whole of Europe. I enjoyed going there whenever I have the possibility even for a week-end just to enjoy the atmosphere in that beautiful historical city and at the same time enjoy a refreshing Kölsch in my favorite place (Sion) with very tasty sausage! I have made sure that all my visitors and friends visit that city! I love Cologne and wish one day have it as my home town!
Naglaa Elhag (Uganda)

Date posted: June 2010

CactusBuddy (UK):
Cologne Cathedral is an immense church, it's special having to go through over 600 years of incompletion and the west facade left incomplete for 420 years. Plus the bells are fascinating, even Petersglocke weighing a stunning 24,050kg.

Klaus Freisinger (Austria):
This is the most famous church in Germany and one of the most recognizable in the world. It stands out for two things especially - its huge, enormous, monstrous size (the third tallest church in the world; for a few years in the 19th century it was the tallest building on the planet) and the time it took to finish it (almost six and a half centuries). As impressive (and I mean, really impressive) as it is from the outside, as ordinary it is on the inside. It´s beautiful, yes, but nothing that compares to most churches in Italy or even France. The Shrine of the Three Kings is the largest reliquary in the Western World and very impressive with all its gold, and is the one thing that should not be missed when you venture inside.

():
my Expirence was great. The tower stairs were very steep and I could hardly make it but the view was really great.
I pesonly think that everybody should go there.
There are also very well painted stain glass windows
and is holds you up for hours just gazing up at them

():
We lived in nearby Dusseldorf for 2 years and visited the Cathedral frequently with friends and visitors. When you look upon it really is breathtaking, it is huge. And I like how it has blackened on the exterior I think it adds to the Gothic feel. But I do agree that it is very touristy and you don't get that peaceful and reverent feel when you are inside like other cathedrals. The stain glass is beautiful and the tomb of the 3 wise men is great so it is definitely worth your time.

Zack Culvert (USA):

Yes the crowds were there, including group of school children on class trip climbing the 517 steps to the top of the tower. If you are not fit, not worth the trip as the city itself does not offer much to see.

That is not to take away from the spetacular stained glass windows, the fantastic mosaic in the ambulatory and the overall grandeur of one of the best Gothic cathedrals I have seen.

Date posted: March 2006

Joyce (Netherlands):

Yes, it is huge and a good example of gothic architecture, but to me this cathedral wasn't very appealing; the outside is dark and dirty (although they are restoring parts of it all the time) and the inside is pretty plain. Good to visit when you are in Cologne, but not worth a trip if you ask me

Date posted: February 2006

Joyce (Netherlands):

The cathedral didn’t look very impressive from the outside and I wondered why it was a WHS, until I stepped inside. The dome is incredible and the golden detailed painting on the roofs were beautiful. The very high stained glass windows are very nice too. If you’re in the neighbouhood it’s definitely worth taking a peek at.

Date posted: December 2005

Ian Cade (England):

As said in many of the other entries the most striking thing about the cathedral is it’s size, it dominates the centre of the city, it is also Germany’s largest cathedral. The exterior of the building is perhaps the finest part, it is Gothic to the very core and everything points upwards, the massive towers were the largest building in Europe until the completion of the Eiffel tower. It also took a long time to complete the building, it was started in 1248 and only completed in 1880, 638 years altogether which is pretty impressive!
The interior is again very Gothic everything making you look up! The stained glass windows are very fine as well, it also contains the Shrine of the Three Magi, containing the remains of the three wise men.
There are a lot of down points to this site though, it was very busy inside, partly because it was free to enter, and this detracts from the feeling that this is a place of worship. The area around the cathedral is also cluttered and untidy, whilst having it share a square with the station is good for your legs, it means that the ugly façade of the station crowds the cathedral surrounds. I was also very under whelmed by Köln on the whole, it had a few nice buildings, but on the whole it left me a little indifferent. However I was quite hung over and didn’t get to sample the apparently impressive local beers!

Date posted: October 2005

Marcel (Germany):
Well ... Cologne and its Cathedral. I'm living in a small town close to Cologne, around a 30 minutes drive away and so I go there quite often for shopping, clubbing or for meeting my penpals who usually visit Cologne and/or Berlin when they're in Germany. The cathedral is amazing and you actually can't miss it as it's "just there". A guided tour is always a plus when you're there, 'cause then you at least forget about people who don't pay respect to a religious building. I'm Catholic, but not religious and don't care much about the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church, but I think that we shall pay respect to religious buildings as many people are religious and their feelings shouldn't be hurt. Well, let me go on with the cathedral: if you're there you also should climb up the many steps to the cathedrals "tower" from where you have a great view over the town. Also the treasure chambery with the coffin of the "3 Holy Kings" and many interesting religious items should be visited. Besides the cathedral Cologne has to offer much more, like interesting museums (including a chocolate museum), many other worth-to-be-seen churches and a few Roman remains as well as cultural experiences like the famous carnival (in February) and Europe's biggest GayPride Parade (= Christopher Street Day, in July).

Date posted: July 2005

Martha Wiley (USA):
I agree with the earlier entry by Yuntenwi Isidore (Cameroon). There are way too many tourists and non-religious visitors to this cathedral and they distract significantly from the overall feeling. They're noisy, rude and badly behaved (shouting and standing on the seats when I was there). Architecturally, this is probably the most impresseive Gothic cathedral I've seen (although I haven't been yet to Amiens or Milan), but as far as ambiance goes? Forget it! But maybe if you wear earplugs and keep your eyes looking up, up, up the way the Gothic architecture wants you to....

Also, when we were there (2004), the road immediately next to the cathedral was under construction. I mean, right next to the cathedral! It looked like Tyranosaurus rex was eating the old concrete overpass. And they were swinging a heavy metal ball against the bridge supports to knock them over. I can only assume they protected the cathedral in some way from the vibrations of the heavy equipment.

Date posted: July 2005

NEUS FLORES (SPAIN):
I recently visited the Cathedral on January 9th this year after 13 years of not seeing it at all, and it impressed me much more than when I was living in Cologne in 1990. It might be just because this time I took myself the time to look at it properly and listen to the guide's explanations, but it really moved me. I also went there out of curiosity for the three kings story, and that impressed me too. So I must accept that besides the cold, the Dom has overwhelmed me tremendously.However, please choose a sunny day to enjoy its splendour at its highest peak.

Jim Humberd (USA):
During our first visit, in 1970, we entered the cathedral through massive west doors, and in the north aisle saw a large dome-shaped bunker made of stone blocks. An English-speaking priest told us that guns and ammunition were stored there during the war. He said that as a warning, a bomb was dropped near the base of the north tower, resulting in minor damage.

Other tourists, including our daughter, said they had been told that same tale, and that same anecdote was re-told during our second visit, a few years later.

In 1991 Jim went to the cathedral office and repeated the fantasy we had been told twenty-one years earlier. The Cathedral architect was shocked to hear that yarn and showed us a book that detailed how stained-glass windows and other art would be stored for protection from possible damage. He couldn’t imagine that story, but admitted that was the fable tourists might expect to hear.

From my book, Invitation To Germany, Google

Yuntenwi Isidore (Cameroon):
I am a student of World Heritage Studies in the Brandenburg University of Technology in Cottbus, Germany. The colongne cathedral is a masterpiece architectural edifice.It is so gorgeous that it instills instant fright when one finds himself in it. The bad thing however, is that so many visitors to the cathedral devoid it of that aura of religiousity that is characteristic of places of worship. It is more of a touristic site than a Christian place of worship.Visitor management and sensitization are vital aspects which need to be taken very seriously in order to make the Cathedral have, at all times, that atmosphere of solemnity that exists at such places of worship.

Zach (USA):
I am an American who visited the cologne cathedral last summer. It was incredibly huge and by far the most specatacular religious building I have ever visited. I am still absolutely amazed when I look at my pictures I took at the cathedral. Who cares about all the hype over Notre Dame?...Cologne cathedral is a beast, and Notre Dame is an overcrowded, undersized, and overhyped attraction.

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