🇦🇹 The St. Stephen's Cathedral

The first church to be constructed in Romanesque style on the grounds where the Stephansdom now stands was begun in the twelfth century. At the time, this was still outside Vienna's city walls. It was only when the city gradually began to be extended, from around 1200 onwards, that Stephansplatz enjoyed protection by a wall, and the church was redesigned, updated and enlarged in the years that followed. The Gothic extension of the church got underway in 1359 under the Hapsburg Duke Rudolf IV, with the 136.4 metre-high south tower being completed in 1433. Although construction of the north tower began in 1450, it was never actually finished, which explains why this tower is a mere 68 metres high.

The Stephansdom is 109 metres long and 72 metres across, and home to no fewer than 22 church bells. The main chimes are produced by 11 of the 13 bells in the high south tower. The famous Pummerin - literally, “the Boomer”, Austria's Big Ben - has been hanging in the North Tower since 1957. At 21 tons in weight, it is the second-largest freely-swinging church bell to be rung in Europe, and can be heard every year when it rings in the new year to begin the global transmission of the traditional New Year's Day Concert by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

As with so many medieval buildings, however, it's often not the 21-ton details that are most fascinating, but the tiny nooks and crannies. As an attentive visitor, you can discover mysterious figures peering down at you throughout the soaring sacred space. These include a vast range of different animals, symbolising the eternal struggle between good and evil, gargoyles in the form of dogs, dragons and lions sit perched on the outer walls, ever-vigilant basilisks keep a watchful eye on anyone and everyone entering or leaving the building at the Great Main Gate, and lizards and toads squat alongside the pulpit runner within. Take a close look around, and it won't be long before you start to make out even more beasts with a distinctly medieval tweak and meaning!

One or more of the stores handed down over the centuries may also be of interest to you. The story of the figure known as “Christ with a toothache”, for instance, which graces the western wall of the hall of the north tower, has become famous amongst the Viennese: actually a depiction of a “Man of Sorrows”, this devotional picture of Christ - complete with scars and a crown of thorns - was a common sight in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. At the time, however, young men were said to have ridiculed the figure, believing it looked as if it had toothache. In an effort to try and help cure his affliction, these Viennese likely lads set about wrapping a cloth around the figure's head. Soon afterwards, however, they began suffering terrible toothache themselves, which they were only able to get rid of again by returning to the Cathedral and begging forgiveness from the Christ with a toothache figure. Another legend locals love to tell is that of the so-called “Madonna of the Servants”, a High Gothic sculpture. This story holds that a servant girl who was once said to have been accused of theft could only prove her innocence by praying to the Madonna of the Servants for help.

The Stephansdom is the symbol of Austria. It managed to withstand disastrous circumstances of all possible shapes and colours - including sieges, wars and vast infernos - almost without suffering a scratch, until it was severely damaged by fire as the Second World War drew to a close. It eventually took just seven years for the Cathedral to be reopened, and this tour de force of engineering remains a symbol of the country's reconstruction to this very day.

The magnificent sacred building continues to exude an almost magnetic attraction for visitors from all four corners of the world. Take the time, and you can discover unimaginable art treasures and architectural high points both inside and out. We strongly recommend, for example, that you take a trip up the south tower by elevator to see the Pummerin, or - if you're slightly lighter on your feet - that you scale the tower's 343 steps! From there, you can enjoy the unbelievable view from the Türmerstube out across Vienna's central Innenstadt district. Also well worth a look, of course, are the High Altar and numerous side altars, tombs and the six chapels. Last but by no means least, meanwhile, are the catacombs and the Domschatz - cathedral treasure - which includes numerous breathtaking masterpieces of religious art.