The 27th Bertha Benz Lecture
Professor Barbara Schock-Werner
Cathedral Architect, Cologne Cathedral
"The Cologne Cathedral as a Commitment"
After the lecture
Award of the Bertha Benz Prize 2010
Laudation: Dr. Thomas Weber
Member of the Management Board of the Daimler Company, Concern Research & MBC Development, Stuttgart, and President of the foundation's Board of Trustees
July 1st 2010 17:00
in Ladenburg
Lobdengauhalle
Realschulstrasse 2
Photo: G. Friedrich (wikimedia) 
The Cologne Cathedral as a Commitment
Comments by Professor Barbara Schock-Werner
on the subject of her lecture
The art historian and construction engineer, Professor Barbara Schock-Werner, has been the head of the Cologne "Dombauhütte" (Church Masons' Guild) and ex officio-Cathedral Architect since 1997. The first woman in this office which was founded in 1248, spoke in her Bertha Benz Lecture on the conservation of the World Heritage "Cologne Cathedral".
The Dombauhütte (Church Masons' Guild) is an institution which is many centuries old, and has existed since the beginning of the cathedral's construction in 1248. Of course, it was temporarily only very sparsely represented or even vacant in the stillstand-centuries between 1520 and the beginning of the 19th century. But since 1842 at the latest, it has again been revived, and is commissioned with preserving the cathedral for future generations. Since its revival, it is characteristic for the Dombauhütte, that it concerns itself with with the cathedral's structural conservation, as well as doing the necessary research and compiling the conservation intervention documentation.
Photo: T. Voekler (wikimedia))
Conservation of the Cathedral - An Interdisciplinary Craft
The Cathedral's Building Authority comprises some 80 permanent employees, more than sixty of them working as craftsmen. The largest group is that of the stone masons, about thirty of them are occupied in the cathedral. They replace ruined or very badly damaged architectural members in stone, or cut sculptures according to models designed by the three sculptors. Scaffolders erect the complicated scaffolds for the cathedral, and also take part in developing them.
The roofers have, in the years since 1985, completely re-covered the high roof in lead, and are now working on the new roof coverings for the aisle and for the choir chapel. Further, they regularly maintain and improve the water drainage, and cover seriously damaged parts with lead, in order to protect them.
Photo: Mkill (wikimedia)
A metalworker and a forgemaster keep the tools in order and make dowels and armature irons to replace corroded ones, nowadays of course, in more durable material. The carpenters renovate old, elaborate wooden furnishings, for example, the cathedral's benches, but also have to make new fixtures, such as confessionals or doors. The electrician attends to the complicated electrical equipment, and lays new cables. The painter is constantly occupied with protective coatings. Because the cathedral has more than 7,000 square meters of glass windows with historical glasses, it has its own glass-restoration workshop, where two glass-painters also work.
Photo: Daniel Goehler (wikimedia)
Combining Building Activity with Science
Under the cathedral, there is an over 3,000 square meter-large archaeological zone, in which the remains of earlier buildings reaching back to the Roman period can be seen. There is a small team of archaeologists who are in charge of these remains.
Everything which has been done in and on the cathedral has been recorded in the archives, whatever is done has to be documented in the archives; for that reason, the cathedral's architectural archive is important. Its archivist is, at the same time, responsible for the care of the works of art in the cathedral. Another academic colleague is compiling an digital inventory of all of the portable objects and art works. Because it will include some 40,000 entries, and the colleague simultaneously also has to do the public relations and press work, it will take some time before the inventory is complete.
Photo: Christoph Rueckert (wikimedia)
The Cathedral's Building Authority is responsible for the Treasury; its directress is at the same time entrusted with the plan archive.
All of the academic colleagues answer many questions and help students doing research on the cathedral. Other independent researchers and conservators work closely together with the Cathedral's Building Authority. There is a specialized library which is also consulted by many guests, and a part-time librarian is in charge of it.
A mechanical engineer is responsible for the mechanical equipment, and supervises the accounting; an architect is responsible for new designs and developments.
© Raimond Spekking / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0 & GFDL
Internal Organization - The Cathedral's Own Shop for the World Outside
An office coordinates everyone's work. Bookkeeping and payroll accounts are managed by the cathedral's own accounting department. The non-profit publishing house Kölner Dom (Cologne Cathedral) produces objects and books which concern themselves scientifically or in a popular manner with the cathedral, or are supposed to advertise for it. They are sold in the new cathedral shop, which was opened as a service for the cathedral's visitors.
In order to make their visit to the cathedral as pleasant and as undisturbed as possible for the numerous guests, the Cathedral Architect has, in the past few years, installed new vestibules and a new system of multilingual text panels.
The close cooperation of science and building activity has, to the present, been characteristic for the Cologne Cathedral's Building Authority. In this respect, it is perceived as a model for many other institutions.
Photo: Randal J./Wikimedia Commons/CC-BY-SA
Homepage of the Cologne Cathedral
Past speakers, publications and downloads
All the presentations have been published in the "Bertha Benz Lecture" series. You can order free copies of these brochures from the Foundation's office:
although some are now out of stock (see below). Since 2002 the Lectures can be downloaded here as PDF files. Please bear in mind that all the texts were published in German.
Ursula Schwarzenbart
Director of Global Diversity Management, Daimler AG
"Diversity Management:
Fashionable Topic or an Economic Necessity?”
Download as PDF (2,6 MB).
Professor Dr. Julia Fischer
German Primate Center, Göttingen
"The Evolution of Speech"
Download as PDF (1.2 MB)
Professor Dr. Juliane Kokott, LL.M. (Am. Univ.), S.J.D. (Harvard),
the First Advocate General
at the European Court of Justice, Luxembourg
"50 Years of the Treaties of Rome – Interpreted by the European Court of Justice "
Download as PDF (220 KB)
Dr. Rita Schulz, European Space Agency (ESA) (2006)
"Exploration of the Solar System:
Europe researches from the front row"
Download as PDF (584 KB)
Marianne Birthler, Federal Commissioner for the Records
of the State Security Service of the former GDR (2005)
"15 Years of German Unification -
15 Years' Recollections of the SED Dictatorship"
Download as PDF (168 KB)
Prof. Dr. Angela Friederici, Psychologist and linguist at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig (2004)
"How Humans understand Language: Insights into the Brain"
Download als PDF (1,6 MB)
Prof. Dr. Gudrun Krämer, Islam expert at the Free University of Berlin (2003)
"Islam, Human Rights and Democracy: Remarks on a difficult relationship"
Download als PDF-Datei (168 KB)
Dr. Heike Schmoll, Editor for Education Policy of the Frankfurter Allgemeinen Zeitung (FAZ) (2002)
"The Weaknesses of the German Educational System What can we learn from Pisa-winner Finland?" (out of stock)
Download als PDF-Datei (172 KB)
Dr. Helga Gräfin von Strachwitz, Africa representative of the Federal Foreign Office of Germany (2001)
"Africa's way into Modern Age"
Dr. Barbara Bludau, Secretary-general of the Max-Planck-Society for the Advancement of Science. (2000)
"Technology transfer - from knowledge to prosperity"
Klaudia Martini, Minister for Environment and Forestry of Land Rhineland-Pfalz (1999)
"Daring to take risks. High-risk decisions as development conditions of modern societies"
Prof. Dr. Helga Rübsamen-Waigmann, Bayer AG, Wuppertal (1998)
"Alte und neue Seuchen im Zeitalter des Massentourismus" (Old and new epidemics in the age of mass tourism)
Heidi E. Hutter, Swiss Reinsurance America Corporation, New York (1997)
"Globalisierung der Rückversicherungswelt - Zum finanziellen Umgang mit großen Risiken" (Globalization of the world of reinsurance – On how to deal with high risks financially)
Dr. Brigitte Seebacher-Brandt, Deutsche Bank AG, Frankfurt (1996)
"Zufall und Notwendigkeit. Wie es zur deutschen Einheit kam." (Chance and necessity - how the German reunification came about)
Gisela Mahlmann, Correspondent of German public-service television ZDF, Baden-Baden (1995)
"Von Marx über Mao zum Markt: China - zwischen Armenhaus und Goldküste" (From Marx via Mao to the Market: China – between poorhouse and El Dorado)
Dr. Karin Lochte, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven (1994)
"Die Bedeutung des Südpolarmeeres für globale Klimaprozesse: Biologische Stoffkreisläufe" (The significance of the Antarctic Ocean for the global climate system: Biological materials cycles)
Prof. Dr. Jutta Limbach, Senator of Justice, Land Berlin (1993)
"Politische Justiz" (Political justice)
(out of stock)
Dr. Angela Merkel, Federal Minister for Women and Young People (1992)
"Der Aufbau in den neuen Bundesländern - Frauen und Jugendliche in einer Zeit des Umbruchs" (Rebuilding in the new Lander - Women and young people in a time of radical change)
Helga Steeg, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, Paris (1991)
"Herausforderungen an die Energiepolitik aus internationaler Sicht" (Challenges to energy policy from an international perspective)
Birgit Breuel, Minister of Finance, Land Lower Saxony (1990)
"Europa im Umbruch. Perspektiven einer Unternehmenssteuerreform" (Europe changing radically - perspectives for a reform of business tax)
Prof. Dr. Lerke Osterloh, University of Trier (1990)
"Sport, Spaß und Allgemeinwohl - Zum Streit um das steuerliche Gemeinnützigkeits- und Spendenrecht" (Sports, fun and public welfare - on the dispute about the tax legislation on charity and donations)
Priv.-Doz. Dr. Marlis Buchmann, Sociological Institute, University of Zurich (1989)
"Tendenzen zeitgenössischer Kulturpraxis - Bedürfnisse kultureller Selbstdarstellung im sozialen Wandel" (Tendencies in contemporary cultural practice - social change of the needs of cultural self-presentation)
Prof. Dr. Hanna Vollrath, University of Cologne (1989)
"Christliches Abendland und archaische Stammeskultur - Zu einer Standortbestimmung des früheren Mittelalters" (The Christian West and archaic tribal culture - Determining a point of reference for the Early Middle Ages)
Prof. Dr. Karin Mölling, MPI for Molecular Genetics Berlin (1988)
"Retroviren in der Krebs- und AIDS-Forschung" (Retroviruses in cancer and AIDS research)
(out of stock)
Prof. Dr. Brigitte Rollett, Institute for Psychology, University of Vienna (1988)
"Neue Forschungen zum Problem der Entwicklung der Begabung" (New research on the question of the development of talent)
(out of stock)
Prof. Dr. Hanna Holborn Gray, President of the University of Chicago (1987)
"Educational Diversity and the Unity of Learning"
(For publications, please click here.)
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