Cologne

Kiley and I took our final trip, of her trip, to Cologne (Koln) on Friday. It was a 2 hour drive that turned out to be well worth the trip. We were able to spend the day eating good food, looking at modern art and admiring beautiful churches. Enjoy the photos!
P.S. The font is really weird on this blog post for some reason, try to ignore it:)

Museum Ludwig
This museum is said to have one of Europe's best collections of modern art, including works by Picasso (third largest collection in the world), Pollock, and Warhol. There was actually a pretty large American Pop Art collections which was kind of fun to see abroad.

Like the Prado Museum in Spain, photography was not allowed, so here are some of the memorable paintings taken from the internet:

Funf Frauen auf der Strasse (Five women on the street), by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner


Composition, by Piet Mondrian (from the Mondrian exhibition)


Maybe, by Roy Lichtenstein


Damen in gruner Jacke (Woman in the green coat), by August Macke


Cologne Cathedral
The Cologne Cathedral (Kolner Dom), built over the course of six centuries becuase of funding problems, is the most famous Gothic structure in Germany. The twin towers of the cathedral stand 515 feet tall, making this the tallest structure in the world until being surpassed in height by the Eiffel Tower.

Cathedral Twin Towers



The cathedral's ornate exterior really was stunning to see from all sides...



The interior of the cathedral is also very beautiful, including the stained glass windows, arches, and altars.





Altar of the Magi (c.1445) is dedicated to the Three Kings, the patrons of Cologne.


The Shrine of the Three Kings (1180-1225) was made to hold relics of the Three Kings brought to Cologne for an Emperor in 1164. However, the design of this jewel-encrusted sarcophagus is not dedicated to the Three Magi, but rather summarizes the history of salvation from the beginning of the Old Testament to return of Christ at the end of time. In the picture shown directly below, the upper row shows the apostles and the lower row depicts prophets and kings of the Old Testament.

Shrine of the Three Kings

The back of the shrine (shown below) depicts the crucifixtion of Christ and the Coronation of Saints Felix and Narbor whose bones are housed in the shrine.

I'm not exactly sure what this is called, but it was essentially a doll-sized figurine of the Virgin, whose dress was covered in pins, jewels, and other sacred pieces.

This winged altar piece, located in the Altar of the Poor Clares (1350-60), is the oldest remaining sacrament altar with a permanently fixed tabernacle. It can be opened in three different transformations.

Floor Mosaic

Located in the Chapel of the Cross, the Gerokreuz (Gero Cross) is the oldest remaining monumental crucifix of the Western World, dating from AD970. This wooden crucifix is unique in that it depicts a lifeless Christ with eyes closed who through his death became the savior of humankind, rather than a suffering or triumphal Christ.

Gerokreuz

When I took the picture below, I though it was the notable Gero Cross just because it looked so old, but I don't really know anything about this one.

Lounging Bishop (odd pose, we thought)


After seeing the interior of the cathedral, we took the 519-step climb to a platform at the base of the southern steeple. This bell may or may not be St. Peter, the largest working bell in the world.

Since you can see out various windows as you climb the stairs (shown below), Kiley and I were a bit nervous as we got higher and higher.




There is a really great Rhine River walkway with views of two bridges.




Groß St. Martin Church








I think this is the Rathaus (town hall)...