One time largest Romanesque cathedral in the world - Speyer Cathedral 168
What and Why
Speyer Cathedral (German: Dom zu Speyer), officially the Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and Saint Stephen, was commissioned for construction by the Holy Roman Emperor (Latin: Imperator Romanorum) Conrad II (Konrad II, né Konrad von Salier) as the world's largest cathedral to demonstrate his might with the other intention to be his last resting place. As a result it is also referred to as the Imperial Cathedral (Kaiserdom).
The Romanesque cathedral, aside from its size is exceptional in a few aspects: i) it has four main towers; ii) it is built entirely with red standstone; iii) it is a tripled-vaulted, and iv) it does not use stained glass as windows. All these features made this cathedral very unique in shape and form even until today. It almost singlehandedly changed the architectural style in Europe and influenced European church construction for the next few centuries. It is regarded as one of the most important architectural monuments of its time and one of the finest Romanesque monuments in the world.
Toponymy
The name Speyer derives from its earlier name Spira which is first recorded in the 7th century CE. This is taken from Spira, a Franks (Latin: Franci) settlement nearby. This word is likely to come from the Yiddish / Aramaic word שפירא (shpira) meaning handsome.
See
Speyer Cathedral (Dom zu Speyer)
The church was constructed on a small hill near to the Rhine (Rhein) but far from water on a former church site. Conrad made his mark in the front facade by having his statue right on top of the entrance.
The entire nave was built with stone in a vaulted shape which was almost unheard of. Most of the churches during the time were made of wood, especially the vaulted roof, and hence this presented enough technological breakthrough. The nave is one of the highest in Europe even until today. The hemispheric columns were also major advancement during the time.
The crypt is also the largest in Europe. Conrad brought a few former emperors and empresses into the crypt to raise the profile of this church. As the burial site for various emperors and kings for a few centuries, the cathedral is regarded as a symbol of imperial power.
To the south it was adjoined by a cloister with a sculpture of the Mount of Olives (Hebrew: הַר הַזֵּיתִים, Har ha-Zeitim) in its centre. Inside the mount is a chapel dedicated to the archangel Michael (Hebrew: מִיכָאֵל, Mîkhā'ēl). Many other surrounding buildings disappeared after the French Revolution (French: révolution française).
In the main square at the western end of the cathedral is a large bowl known as cathedral bowl (Domnapf). It marks the former boundary between the episcopal and municipal territories. Each new bishop on his election had to fill the bowl with wine, while the people would drink them all.
Stay
Instead of Speyer we stayed in Heidelberg, which is one of the most beautiful cities in Germany. We stayed in Leonardo Heidelberg.
Getting There and Around
Drive. Speyer is not an interesting town and it will not take you more than two hours to visit the church.
UNESCO Inscription
Speyer Cathedral, a basilica with four towers and two domes, was founded by Conrad II in 1030 and remodelled at the end of the 11th century. It is one of the most important Romanesque monuments from the time of the Holy Roman Empire. The cathedral was the burial place of the German emperors for almost 300 years.
References
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