CATHEDRAL AT MAGDEBURG

WIENER, Jacques: Germany, 1865, Bronze, 59 mm
Obv: View of exterior    DOM ZU MAGDEBURG
Rev: View of interior
On left:  GRUNDSTEIN GELEGT 1209
On right:  EINGEWEIHT 1363 (incorrectly indicated as 1863 in Van Hoydonck)
Signed: J. WIENER / J. WIENER
Ref: Van Hoydonck 210;  Reinecke 29;Bouhy 40; Ross M271; Weiss BW275

This cathedral, officially called the Cathedral of Saints Maurice and Catherine, is the most important building in Magdeburg. It was begun in the 13th century and completed in the 16th century and was dedicated to St. Maurice and St. Catherine. The structure, with two 344-ft-high towers, exhibits an interesting blending of Romanesque and Gothic architecture.
Magdeburg, which at the beginning of the 9th century was a small trading settlement on the frontier of Slavonic lands, owes its early importance to Otto I the Great who established a convent there about 937. Although burned down in 1188, Magdeburg became a flourishing commercial town during the 13th century, and was an important member of the Hanseatic league. It became celebrated for establishing in the 13th century an autonomous municipal administration, a model of which, known as the "Magdeburg law", was later widely adopted not only in Germany but also in many countries of eastern Europe.
During the Thirty Years War, the city was sacked and burned, and almost 40,000 of its inhabitants were butchered. By the peace of Westphalia (1648) the archbishopric was converted into a secular duchy. In 1806, the fortress of Magdeburg surrendered to Napoleon and until 1813 was part of the kingdom of Westphalia.

Side view of cathedral

Statue of Saint Maurice

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