Wetzlar Cathedral, Germany

The unfinished cathedral

Address

At the Dom in Wetzlar, although you have to follow the prominent peak of the building to get to it, let's name the address: Domplatz (Cathedral Square), postal code 35578. It is Wetzlar's best-known tourist attraction. Also helpful are the signposts that you can find everywhere, so dense that you can't get lost. Valid for all sights in the city and especially in the Altstadt (Old Town) where most of them are concentrated. Domplatz is a pedestrianized area, but you can still find enough drivers to sneak carefully among the passers-by. I didn't expect this in Germany, but I think it's an effect of the populations that are starting to cohabit here.

A bit of history

The first church was founded here in 897. Parts of it can still be seen. At that time it was built of massive stone and there were few spaces for natural lighting. Then, in the first period of the town's flourishing, in the 13th century, a larger building was erected around the first construction, which was improperly given the title of monastery. The construction techniques brought by the Romans were more evolved so that they designed more open spaces, implicitly brighter, but also two large towers, of which only one was built, as can be seen in the pictures, the period of decline that followed was the cause of the halt of the work to raise the second tower. Many holes can be seen in the building stone, which were used for the vertical ascent of the heavy building material.

1. Roman tower, high tower and bas-relief

A plaque near the entrance explains the bas-relief raised above it. Beneath the stone figure of Mary with child, there is a representation of a devil holding a Jew. In effect, this means that he is trampling the Jews underfoot. The written message on the plaque is meant to explain that such thinking is a thing of the past and that today the supreme creed is to respect the rights of all people. Signed Evangelical Community, signed Catholic Community.

Roman tower

basorelieful

High Tower

2. Inside

The entrance is not from the front, where the main access seems to be, but from the side. It is free until 6 pm, then it is locked. There is a guided tour for a fee. First, the organ. The interior is cross-shaped.

Wetzlar Cathedral

Orga

inside

3. Outside

The Wetzlar cathedral is also called the unfinished cathedral, the asymmetry of the construction, which proves this attribute, is easily visible in the pictures.

The cathedral tower and the sky

Wetzlar Cathedral

Cathedral seen from a park on the banks of the Lahn

4. Chapels

From Roman times there is also the large baptismal font, which was placed here so that those who were not baptized could be baptized in case of emergency if they wanted to shelter in the church as it was done in times of war. To the side, but inside, there are 2 chapels with pews or chairs where you can recline and light candles: Stephanuskapelle and Johanneskapelle.

Johanneskapelle

Stephanuskapelle

5. Understanding between confessions

Over the years it has been the practice, found in many churches and cathedrals in Germany, for representatives of the different communities living in the area to get along and live together under the same church roof. Sometimes the church spaces were even shared. Today, two very strong and well-represented denominations are "active" in the Wetzlar cathedral: the Evangelical and the Catholic. The church is actively present in the life of the community in Wetzlar, organizing events for the population or involving the population in their organization.

The entrance which is closed

Asymmetry due to the absence of the second tower

Conclusion

Wetzlar Cathedral is the city's most famous tourist attraction. Visit it!

All the best!

Steps:

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