Mariendom Lower Saxony & Bremen

Hildesheim’s Unesco World Heritage–listed cathedral took its present form in 1061 and was virtually rebuilt after its WWII bombing, then reopened in 2014 after a painstaking renovation and restoration process. It’s famous for the almost 5m-high Bernwardstüren, bronze doors with bas-reliefs dating from 1015. These depict scenes from the Bible’s Old and New Testaments. The church’s wheel-shaped chandelier and the Christussäule (Column of Christ) are also from the original cathedral. Go out through the rear doors to the cloister to see the giant Tausend-Jähriger Rosenstock (1000-year-old rosebush) climbing up the cathedral wall. Thought to date from the mid-800s, the rosebush served as a powerful symbol for Hildesheim when the cathedral was destroyed in 1945 and new shoots appeared from a root buried by debris.To reach the Dom from Hauptbahnhof, take bus 1 to Bohlweg.