New Cathedral, Linz

About

The New Cathedral of Linz, in German the Neuer Dom or Mariendom, is the principal Catholic church of the Upper Austrian capital and the largest church building in Austria. It was conceived by Bishop Franz-Josef Rudigier, whose plans began in 1855 and whose foundation stone was laid on 1 May 1862, an event marked by the performance of Anton Bruckner's cantata Preiset den Herrn.

Designed by Vincenz Statz, master builder of the Archdiocese of Cologne, the cathedral was raised in the French High Gothic style and consecrated in 1924 as the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. Its interior measures 130 metres in length and covers more than 5,170 square metres, with room for 20,000 worshippers. The planned spire would have stood taller, but Austro-Hungarian law forbade any building from exceeding the South Tower of Saint Stephen's in Vienna, so the final spire rises to 134.6 metres, two short of Vienna's.

The cathedral is celebrated for its stained glass, particularly the Linz Window, which tells the history of the city in coloured light, alongside windows carrying portraits of benefactors. Windows of the southern aisle damaged in the Second World War were replaced with modern designs.

Within stand the Rudigierorgel, the great organ built by Marcussen and Son in 1968, and a tower carrying seven swinging bells cast by Anton Gugg in 1901. The largest, the bourdon Immaculata, weighs eight tonnes.

History

Bishop Franz-Josef Rudigier began planning the cathedral in 1855, and its foundation stone was laid on 1 May 1862 to the sound of Anton Bruckner's cantata Preiset den Herrn. Vincenz Statz, master builder of the Archdiocese of Cologne, designed the building in the French High Gothic style, and Bishop Johannes Maria Gfoellner consecrated the finished cathedral on 29 April 1924. Austro-Hungarian law once forbade any building from rising taller than Saint Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, so the completed spire reaches 134.6 metres, two metres short of its Viennese model.

Significance

With room for 20,000 worshippers across more than 5,170 square metres, the Mariendom is the largest church in Austria, though not its tallest, and its Linz Window tells the city's own history in stained glass alongside windows portraying the cathedral's benefactors. The Rudigierorgel, built in 1968 by the Danish firm Marcussen and Son, and seven bells cast by Anton Gugg in 1901, the largest an eight-tonne bourdon named Immaculata, still call the diocese to prayer. As the cathedral of the Diocese of Linz, it remains Upper Austria's principal place of Catholic worship and a landmark of the city's skyline.

Architecture

Neo-Gothic (French High Gothic style), designed by Vincenz Statz