Mount of Olives Outside Speyer Cathedral
I knew that the Speyer Cathedral was big but once I got in and went back out of the cathedral, only then did I realize how large it actually is. This is the largest romanesque cathedral in the world. It was built in a small town which was strange because there won’t be enough people to fill the cathedral. It was obviously a statement by the builders who actually wasn’t the church but the emperor at the time. This was an obvious challenge to the authority of the pope by the emperor who not only lays claim to secular power but so ecclesiastical power. At the time, there were strained relations between the empire and the church and by building the gigantic cathedral, the emperor tries to tell everybody who is the top dog.
Mount of Olives Sculpture
While just looking at the largest romanesque cathedral in the world is already enough for me, it seems that there are some interesting structures outside the cathedral. This is not uncommon though but seeing one here makes me appreciate the cathedral even more. The Mount of Olives is a sculpture that stands outside the Speyer Cathedral. It is a representation of the events that happened at the Mount of Olives which happened just before the crucifixion. The sculpture was originally the center of a large cloister which was attached to the cathedral. This means that the cathedral was even bigger back then. This was all destroyed in a fire and the sculpture was likewise damaged. The sculpture was subsequently repaired with a roof added to protect it from the elements.
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