Bamberg Cathedral

Bamberg Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of St Peter and St George
Bamberger Dom
Bamberg Cathedral
Map
49°53′27″N 10°52′57″E / 49.89083°N 10.88250°E / 49.89083; 10.88250
LocationBamberg
CountryGermany
DenominationCatholic
WebsiteWebsite of the cathedral
History
StatusActive
Founded1002
Founder(s)Heinrich II (Henry II)
Consecrated6 May 1012
Architecture
Functional statusMetropolitan Cathedral, Minor Basilica
StyleRomanesque
Completed1012
Specifications
Length94 metres
Width28 metres
Height26 metres
Number of spires4
Spire height81 metres
Administration
ArchdioceseArchdiocese of Bamberg
Clergy
ArchbishopHerwig Gössl
TypeCultural
Criteriaii, iv
Designated1993 (17th session)
Reference no.624
RegionEurope and North America
Plan showing the two choirs, one at each end of the nave
Bamberg Cathedral from the west

Bamberg Cathedral (German: Bamberger Dom, official name Bamberger Dom St. Peter und St. Georg) is a church in Bamberg, Germany, completed in the 13th century. The cathedral is under the administration of the Archdiocese of Bamberg and is the seat of its archbishop. Since 1993, the cathedral has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Town of Bamberg".

It was founded in 1002 by King (and later Emperor) Heinrich II (Henry II) and consecrated in 1012. With the tombs of Henry II and his spouse Cunigunde, the cathedral contains the remains of the only imperial couple that was canonized. With the tomb of Pope Clement II (1005–1047) it also contains the only papal grave in Germany, and north of the Alps.

After the first two cathedrals burned down in the 11th and 12th centuries, the current structure, a late Romanesque building with four large towers, was built in the 13th century.

The cathedral is about 94 m long, 28 m broad, 26 m high, and the four towers are each about 81 m high. It contains many works of art, including the marble tomb of the founder and his wife, the Empress Kunigunde, considered a masterpiece of the sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider, and carved between 1499 and 1513.

Another well-known treasure of the cathedral is an equestrian statue known as the Bamberg Horseman (German: Der Bamberger Reiter). This statue, possibly depicting the Hungarian king Stephen I, most likely dates to the period from 1225 to 1237 and is the first of its kind since antiquity.