When Cologne Cathedral Shines in the Dark
The planners from Licht Kunst Licht, in collaboration with RheinEnergie and the Dombauhütte, have implemented a new, highly efficient lighting concept for the exterior of Cologne Cathedral, which was inaugurated on Easter Sunday 2025. With the switch to a modern and precise LED system, the unique cathedral—designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996—displays an impressive visual impact after dark and at twilight. Planned with great ecological responsibility, light pollution and energy consumption have been significantly reduced.
In 1838, Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm announced a visit to Cologne. In his honor, the impressive yet still incomplete Gothic cathedral, nearly six centuries into its construction, was illuminated for the first time. The effort had an impact: four years later, now crowned king, the Hohenzollern monarch laid the foundation stone for the cathedral’s continued construction. The cathedral was eventually completed, but it wasn’t illuminated until 1929, when Mayor Konrad Adenauer ordered a regular lighting system, that the cathedral’s distinctive twin towers became a feature of Cologne’s nighttime skyline.
