Christi Auferstehung (Lindenthal)
Sculptural concrete church by Gottfried Böhm at the head of the Lindenthal Canal – with a cave-like interior of branching pillars.
Christi Auferstehung is a Catholic church in the Cologne district of Lindenthal, built between 1968 and 1970 to designs by Gottfried Böhm and consecrated in 1971. It is considered both a defining example and the culmination of the architect's series of plastic, sculptural buildings.
Source: Wikipedia
At a Glance
- Type
- Catholic parish church (Braunsfeld pastoral area)
- District
- Lindenthal
- Built
- 1968–1970, consecrated 1971
- Architect
- Gottfried Böhm
- Materials
- Alternating brick and exposed concrete
- Organ
- 1,573 pipes, façade designed by Gottfried Böhm
- Bells
- Five, cast in 1968
- Award
- 1981 European winner of the MB Architecture Competition
The church's windows are made not of traditional stained glass but of two fused plastic panels with red paint, brass pins, and steel nails embedded between them – a highly unusual material for a sacred building.
Age comparison
Age compared with other places in Cologne.
Location and Setting
The church stands as a focal point at the western end of the Lindenthal Canal, which runs east–west from the Aachener Weiher toward the Stadtwald and is lined by an avenue of old trees. At the canal's head, the waterway opens onto a small square from which broad steps lead up to the slightly elevated building. Water and mature trees frame the church on all sides.
Architecture
The floor plan is irregularly polygonal, with volumes stacked and interlocked in complex ways. Brick and exposed concrete alternate on the main church body, while the flanking parish buildings are built entirely in reddish brick — a contrast that continues inside. Several sculptural forms rise upward, cut off by sloping roof planes; at the north-west corner, a slender tower with a spiral staircase tops the composition. The originally bare sloping concrete roof surfaces were later clad in lead after the material proved unable to withstand the weather. In 1981 the church was named a European winner of the MB Architecture Competition.
Interior
Inside, the atmosphere is distinctly cave-like, heightened by the reddish brick walls. The irregular form means there are almost no flat surfaces — instead, niches and angles give each liturgical function its own dedicated space. Heavy load-bearing concrete columns branch upward into a intricate vault that reaches its greatest height above the altar. Böhm saw the branching of the columns as an extension of the tree-lined avenue leading to the church.
Furnishings
Böhm himself designed the Creation, Redemption, Resurrection, and Marian windows: each consists of two fused plastic sheets with embedded red pigment, brass pins, and steel nails. Above the altar hangs the corpus of a 16th-century crucifix against a brick surface whose stones form a slender cross. An 18th-century baptismal font is paired with a cover by Sepp Hürten, creating a synthesis of old and new. Matthäus Winter's six-metre-tall tabernacle has stood in the sacrament niche since 1984. Böhm also designed the organ façade with its 1,573 pipes.
2021 Attack
In the early hours of 12 May 2021, unknown individuals damaged two rainbow flags that had been hung outside the church in solidarity with gay and lesbian people whom the Vatican had ruled could not receive a blessing from clergy.
Predecessor Building
The parish, founded in 1920 near the Melaten Cemetery, received a church designed by Franz Schneider between 1934 and 1936. Despite bomb damage in 1944, it remained in use until 1967–68 before having to be demolished due to structural problems.
Timeline
- 1920New parish Christi Auferstehung founded near Melaten cemetery
- 1934–1936Predecessor church built after designs by Franz Schneider
- 1944War damage from bombing raid
- 1967/1968Predecessor church demolished due to structural problems
- 1968–1970New church built after plans by Gottfried Böhm; bells cast
- 1971Church consecrated
- 1981European winner of the MB Architecture competition
- 1984Six-metre tabernacle by Matthäus Winter placed in the sacrament niche
Gallery
Map
Blue dots: other places nearby — tap to explore.
You might also like
Comments
- Loading comments…
Sources & links
Auto-generated, last verified: 2026-06-26