St. Stephens Cathedral

Stephansdom, as this church is known in German, is the seat of the Archbishop of Vienna. The 1st church on this site dates to the 12th century, but the Dom as it is today dates to the 14th century. Some archaeological work has suggested that the Dom is built on the site of an ancient cemetery dating to Roman times, suggesting that this site has had religious importance for as much as 2,000 years.
The cathedral was undamaged in world war 2. However, just as much the Soviet army was entering the city, looters set fires that sent sparks to the cathedral roof that eventually collapsed, resulting in extensive damage. All of Austria stepped up to rebuild. People from across the country came to Vienna to volunteer to work. Every section of the country sponsored some part of the restoration. As one example, Vienna sponsored the roof of tiles weighing some 600 tons.
The 1st picture is the cathedral looking from Stephansplatz. The 2nd is the front of the building. The 3rd is the main nave, and the 4th is a close up of the altar. The last picture is one of the side aisles.Read more