St. Aposteln

In the centre of the city traffic is the Church of St. Aposteln: a monumental oasis of peace in its own complete and holy world. Its glory is the domed clover leaf chancel, which was built around 1200. The story of how today’s building originated begins in the 11th century.

At that time the church was on the road in the direction of Aachen, directly ahead of the roman city walls at the western main gate. It belonged to the choral diocese, that Archbishop Pilgrim founded in his time.

In the 13th century the church was significantly enlarged. In addition to the clover leaf chancel there was also the octagonal dome above the crossing, which was added at this time, which gives St. Aposteln its monumental, almost Byzantine appearance. The old structures were retained and, in spite of the building modifications, were copied and integrated into the new construction project.

The sequential and complementary building phases can be well identified in the St. Aposteln church. An extraordinary and controversial combination of historical and modern art is shown with a glance into the choral arches: the modern paintings by Herrmann Gottfried from the years 1988 until 1994 always provoke a host of diverse opinions.