Evening star., 1914-10-25

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that ranks In Gothic beauty with To
finest in Europe. or the world. 1t isf4
cathedral which has a unique history
which shows the deliberateness of tkf
Teutons. Il,
Begun in l2&s, the last stone was not
placed In position until 1883. when. t1
the presence of Emperor William and
the scions Of the royal family, with Inn
thedral was formally completed after
q wait of more than six and a quarter
centuries. The partially completed ca
thedral stood upon the banks of the
Rhine from the fifteenth to the nfne-
teenth century entirely neglected.
The magnificent structure. from more
than 500 years OF lack Of care or at
tention, was slowly falling into rufns
when. in 1896. the cathedral was con-
verted into a magazine for storing hay
by the French. and later. to make its
dilapidation complete. the lead was
abstracted from its temporary roof
Frederick William III and four Prus-
sian kings rescued the old edince from
total destruction: hut 1t was not really
renovated till 1928. when Herr Zwirner.
a masterof the Gothic style. was put IN
charge Of completing the cathedral. tho
annual funds for which being sub
scribed by the government. private
subscriptions and from the proceeds OF
a lottery. The cathedral Is cruciform
structure. the nave being danked with
a double and the transept with single
aisles. The magnificent towers are each
512 feet in height, the loftiest in Eu-
rope, and the massive masonry Is en-
bellished with. flying buttresses. tur.
rets. galleries. cornices. gargoyies ana
foliage.
The western facade is particularly
beautiful, having been completed enact
ly in accordance with the original de-
sign OF the fourteenth century. which
still exists. In the Maternus Chapel ana
in the Chapel of, St John. under glass.
are carefully preserved the original
sketches of the cathedral. The former
portion was found in France in 1916.
and, the latter. larger and more I'm.
portant plan drawn on parchment show
ing, tho two towers and the western
facade as in the completed form. was
discovered in Darmstadt IN 1914
The large stained-glass window above
the western portal was executed by
Milde of Lubbock, and presented by the
German crown prince and his wife. The
sixteenth century glass in the north
aisle is a particularly fine example OF
the best workmanship Of that period.
The modern glass in the windows OF the
south portal were executed in Berlin.
and were presented to the cathedral by
Emperor William.
The Cologne Cathedral, while partic-
ularly famous for its enormously tall
and ornate Gothic towers and for its
splendid sculptures. Is also rich in
splendid glass and filled with valuable
works of art. The frescoes in tho
arches of the choir are by Stein1e and
represent the angel choirs. The walls
behind the fifteenth century finely
carved choir stalls are completely COW
cred with rich tapestries illustrating
the Nicene creeo and the Seven Sacra-
ments.
A marble mausoleum In the Chapel of
the Three Kings contained the bones
of the Magi," believed to have been Sc
cured by the Empress Helena and
brought to Constantinople; later the
erick Barbarosa to the Archbishop Won
Dassele, who removed them to Cologne.
where they now repose in a rich reli-
quarry in the cathedrafs treasury"
The heart Of poor Marie de Medicis-
who died in exile In Cologne in the
same year as her inveterate enemy.
Cardinal Richelieu, who sent her into
exile-is buried under an unmarked
stone at the entrance to the Chapel Of
the Three Kings.
SO
The largest Of the famous cathedral
bells" in the south tower is called the
'kaiserglocke," and was cast in 1874.
The kaiserbell weighs twenty-five tons
and was cast from the metal from cap
tured French guns. Should the Cologne
Cathedral suffer by any chance the
fate which has befallen other priceless
hetrIooms of antiquity. the kaiser and
his people would feel the loss as keen3y
as do the Belgians and French the t6u-
tilation and destruction of their splen.
did cathedrals.
The Strassburg Cathedral. In Strassl
burg, the capital of Alsace-Lorraines 10
a fine structure. which dates from the
twelfth century. 1t occupies the site
of an ancient church founded by Clovis
in the sixth century. q
Its fine facade IL by Steinback, and
the three beautiful portals represent
ing the Creation and Redemption are
among the finest Gothic works in ex-
istence. The light enters the cathedral
through splendid old stained-glass dat
ing from the fifteenth century, and
the richly carved stone pulpit is a work
of art executed by Hans Hammer in
1885. The tower Of the cathedral. with
its lofty windows and perforated stair
case turrets, Is most imposing.
thedral may ascend the $50 steps to the
platform, from which q fine view is
seen of the Rhine valley, the Black
forest, and the snow-capped Vosges.
The ascent Of the winding staircase to
the top of the spire is now prohibited.
several accidents having occurred from
dizziness overcoming the climbers, who
fell through the openwork of the spire.
The lantern Immediately below the
extreme summit of the spire. and the
massive gilt cross which surmounts
it, were badly damaged by proJectiles
during the siege of 1870. Until recent:
years the cross hung at precarious
angle, and the cathedral itself showed
the mutilations caused by the Prus-
sian bombardment. But, happily. all
signs of wars havoc have now been
obliterated-it is hoped for all time.