Halberstadt Cathedral

The Halberstadt Cathedral stands in the old town of Halberstadt, in the Harz region of Saxony-Anhalt. It is a Gothic church built between 1236 and 1491, replacing an earlier Romanesque building. The cathedral was founded in 804 as the seat of the Bishopric of Halberstadt by Emperor Charlemagne. In 1591 the bishop joined the Protestant Reformation, and the cathedral has served the Protestant Church ever since. The building suffered heavy damage in the Second World War but was restored in the following decades. The cathedral still holds much of its medieval decoration and stained glass. Its treasury contains more than 600 artworks from the 5th to the 18th century, including a notable collection of textiles. Many of the most valuable pieces came from Byzantium after Bishop Konrad von Krosigk took them from Constantinople in 1205. An organ installed in 1361 is thought to be the first with a modern chromatic keyboard. In 2001 a performance of John Cage’s *As Slow as Possible* began here, lasting 639 years until 2640. Visitors enter a Gothic interior with soaring vaults and medieval windows. The treasury displays goldsmith work, manuscripts and textiles from across Europe. The organ’s pipes rise above the nave, a reminder of the building’s musical past. Outside, the cathedral’s towers overlook the Harz hills. The surrounding streets lead to Halberstadt’s market square with its half-timbered houses.