Bern Minster, Protestant cathedral in Bern, Switzerland
Bern Minster is a Protestant church building that rises above the Old City with its Gothic tower constructed from local sandstone. The structure displays typical Gothic features with elaborately decorated portals and a soaring tower form.
The foundation stone was laid in 1421, with the city of Bern and the Teutonic Order as builders; Matthäus Ensinger was the first master builder. Work halted with the Reformation of 1528 and resumed in 1571, when Daniel Heintz added the nave's net vault in 1573. The tower's lower octagon dates from the 16th century, while its upper octagon was completed in 1893, reaching 100.6 m.
The name Münster refers to the collegiate church founded in 1485, when Bern broke away from the Teutonic Order and installed canons bound to the Lausanne liturgy. The choir's 15th-century stained glass cycle, made alongside that of Königsfelden, is counted among the most important in Switzerland. Six antiphonary volumes were written and illuminated for the canons; four were sold to Estavayer-le-Lac, two surfaced in Vevey only in 1982/1989.
The climb to the observation platform at the tower top involves ascending steps and provides views over the city and distant mountains. Visitors should expect a narrow stairway that requires some physical effort.
The main portal holds 234 sandstone figures of the Last Judgment. Because of 20th-century air pollution, the 47 life-size figures were replaced by copies; the originals are kept in the Bern Historical Museum.
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