Köln Cathedral

One thing that you should mark on your Cologne travel guide is Köln Cathedral because it is undoubtedly the city’s landmark.

As a tourist in Cologne, there are lots of things that you could visit but you cannot miss Köln Cathedral or Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom, or Hohe Domkirche St. Peter und Maria) because it is the largest building in town.

If I were to choose one most important thing about traveling, I would have to say it is getting to know the cultural heritage of every travel destination or monument I visit. So, here are few things that are good to know when visiting Cologne Cathedral.

Its construction was initiated by Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden in the year 1248 and completed 632 years later, in 1880.

The cathedral was dedicated to St. Mary and St. Peter and was designed to preserve the relics of The Three Wise Men (The Magi) who visited Jesus Christ after his birth in Bethlehem.

The colossal structure – 144 meters long, 86 meters wide and 157 meters high – is unique in the world and the architecture has a strong Gothic influence.

The years have inevitably left their mark on the exterior color, so the facade reveals the true age of the building. The two towers of the cathedral reach the clouds, making obvious its impressive dimensions.

An interesting fact is that for four years, between 1880 and 1884, the Cathedral of Cologne was the tallest building in the world, until the construction of the Washington Monument. The Cathedral of Cologne is, however, the tallest Gothic building in the world and one of the most visited religious monuments in Europe.

Find out more on Cologne tourist attractions in my next post.