Grossmünster, Romanesque Protestant church in Old Town, Switzerland
Grossmünster is a Romanesque church in Zurich's Old Town featuring two prominent towers that shape the city's skyline. The towers received neo-Gothic tops after a fire in 1763 destroyed the original wooden steeples.
Construction began around 1100 on the site of an earlier Carolingian church and reached completion with consecration around 1220. It became a Protestant church during the Reformation and remains an important spiritual center in the city today.
The church houses modern stained glass windows by Sigmar Polke and choir windows by Augusto Giacometti that add contemporary artistic layers to the interior. These works create a conversation between the medieval structure and present-day creative expression.
The interior is accessible most days with different opening hours on weekdays and Sundays, making it easy to fit a visit into your schedule. The towers can be climbed for a modest fee and reward visitors with sweeping views across the city and surrounding area.
The capitals of the medieval columns feature intricate grotesque carvings depicting peculiar creatures and figures that reveal the artistic humor of the builders. A Romanesque crypt from the 11th century lies beneath the church, preserving traces of this earliest religious layer.
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