Latin Cathedral, Catholic cathedral in Old Town, Lviv, Ukraine
The Latin Cathedral is a Gothic church with twin western towers reaching about 65 m high, built on an elongated plan with a faceted eastern end. Renaissance chapels line the interior spaces, and stained glass windows by Józef Mehoffer and Jan Matejko brighten the area behind the main altar.
King Casimir III of Poland began construction in 1360 as the main seat for the newly established Latin diocese in the region. The building has stood through multiple military conflicts and sieges across the centuries, becoming a witness to the city's changing history.
The cathedral has always served as a gathering place for people to celebrate religious occasions and mark important moments in their lives. You can still see visitors today coming to pray quietly or joining communal services that bring the community together.
You can visit the cathedral during regular service times, held in Ukrainian and Polish languages. It functions as an active church, so arrive respectfully and be aware that services may affect when you can walk around freely.
Cannonballs are embedded in the eastern wall, left from the Turkish siege of 1672 and the Ukrainian-Polish conflict of 1918. Latin inscriptions beside these projectiles tell the story of the conflicts this building has survived.
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