Location: Luxembourg City
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Things to do in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg District: The Best Architectural Buildings
A captivating contrast of old and new, Luxembourg City's past is celebrated by its World Heritage status; its present sway by its position as headquarters for several significant European institutions. Small enough to explore on foot, this compact city offers a wealth of attractions, including dramatic promontory The Bock, underground passages in Petrusse Casemates, Palace of the Grand Dukes and the National Museum. Countless banks on Boulevard Royal, once a fortress moat, hint at the duchy's wealth.
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1. Plateau du Rham
2. Kirchberg - Plateau
3. Cathedrale Notre-Dame
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 2,009 reviews
Reviewed By periandro - Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
It's an impressive building visible from many points and which can be considered as a landmark of the city of Luxembourg. It was first built to serve as a Jesuit college. The construction works took place in the first quarter of the 17th century thus leading to a monastic college church in line with the Belgian Jesuit churches significant in the century concerned, much smaller in size than the temples existing nowadays. In accordance with the inscription which can be seen on the portal the said construction works were completed in 1621. The ancient monastic church was constructed under Brother Jean du Blocq's design. The front door of that ancient building faces the rue Notre Dame. The portal itself is in baroque style albeit the ornamentation of its strapwork is in la Flemish renaissance style. It's a beautiful part of the church outer façade containing some different elements whose observation can make the architecture lovers be delighted. At each side of the door there is a niche whose top parts have a shell form. They are respectively flanked by two columns with corinthian capitals. The left niche contains the stone statue of St. Ignatius. That on the right houses the statue of St. Francis Xavier. Above them there are two sculptured medallions carved into the wall which supposedly represent the heads of two prophets. The door upper part is semicircular. It's profusely ornamented, two worshiping angels hovering in the spandrels of the archway. There is a third niche above that archway, in the middle of the pediment, inserted in it. That niche contains a statue of the Virgin with the Child. It's a sculpture in early baroque style representing the Immaculate Conception to whom the church is dedicated. At both sides of that statue there are other two representing the apostles St. Peter and St. Paul, respectively, and above the former there is one of St. Nicholas. In the wooden spandrel within the semicircle part of the entrance arch one can see the coat of arms of the Society of Jesus. Beneath that spandrel there is an inscription reading “Sit Nomen Domini Benedictum” followed by the consecration date, 1621. The whole forms a fabulous ensemble whose contemplation makes any sensitive person be enraptured. Unfortunately, that iconographic scheme couldn't be kept in its original artistic form and it had to be thoroughly renovated in the twenties and thirties of the twentieth century since erosion had largely damaged most of the statues. Another part of the church exterior arousing the interest of anyone seeing it for the first time is the western portal in the new part of the building. Albeit it dates back to the first half of the twentieth century, its architectural arrangement and its iconography are based on those cathedral portals of the Middle Ages. The whole is of a spectacular beauty, particularly the monumental statue of Our Lady by the Luxembourgish sculptor Auguste Trémont, which dominates the entrance and constitutes an art work, and the bronze double doors by the same artist. They complement each other in their figurative style, and depict scenes from the old and new histories of salvation; that concerning the panels of the right door start with the Annunciation and ends with the Virgin's Assumption. One can admire the façade where the said double door finds itself, for instance upon realising that human creativity in architecture, painting, sculpture, music and craftsmanship has been incorporated into the biblical narration of the Creation. Once inside, it can be observed that the specific character of the central nave is attributable to the late renaissance decorative style. The impressive size of the interior is something certainly enchanting the visitor. Before entering that building for the first time one cannot expect that he will be able to feel a marvellous grandiosity such as that appearing before him at the sight of the splendid spectacle which the cathedral inner part constitutes. It's a three-nave temple, the height of the central nave being a bit larger than that of the side aisles. Before a short passageway leading to the transept, whose vault is ornamented with paintings by Friedrich Stummel, there are six bays, the first of which, shorter than the others, contains the organ platform (triforium). It's obvious that the specific character of that church segment central nave derives from its late renaissance decorative style. The five round columns separating on each side of the nave the latter from the side aisles rest on high octagonal bases and are topped by capitals of doric inspiration. Those columns are enwreathed with unusual strapwork. The patterns of such a columns ornamentation were presumably drawn by Brother Jean du Blocq himself, who, as stated, had actually drawn the plan of the church. The nave vault is supported by pointed arches appertaining to the late gothic period. All in all therefore, one can observe in that section of the cathedral a tasteful blending of gothic traditional architectural elements with new forms of decoration in renaissance style. On the spandrels and archivolts as regards the triforium balustrade one can see some beautiful sculptures also in renaissance style typically made of alabaster. They represent particularly music playing angels and heads of cherubs which are reminiscent of early baroque. Those sculptures are a real work of art which reveals much sensitiveness and a perfect mastery of the art on their author's part. For this reason that masterpiece should be beheld attentively. That triforium is supported in the aisles by two three-centred arches respectively one on each side, while three semicircular arches support it in the nave. The latter are held up by two small candelabra-like and richly sculptured columns. Since the ribbed vault below the triforium is of late gothic style in the church part concerned one can again observe the coalescence of the late gothic and the new decorative style. The decoration concerned is really striking. It consists mainly in masks on the columns and pedestals. The church was enlarged in the thirties of the twentieth century. That new part of the building consists of a spacious transept, a new chancel, two aisles, narrower than those of the ancient part, surmounted by galleries and a crypt with the burial vault of the Grand-Ducal Family. The harmonious architectural unity resulting from the combination of old and new parts of the building is outstanding. To pass from the ancient part to the new one there is a triumphal arch which forms a passageway. The ornamentation of that passageway ceiling is very attractive and very well executed. Among other elements that ceiling painting shows the images of six prophets and of the kings David and Solomon, everything conceived with much taste. There are also two splendid tapestries, one of each side of the passageway which are of a great artistic value. Besides, the mural paintings on the wall sections above the tapestries are wonderful. They depict some scenes of Jesus's life as per the Gospel. On the left section one can see, duly represented, some events in which Jesus child is told to have participated, and on the right side scenes from the Cana Wedding and of the Last Supper are portrayed. It's worth contemplating such beautiful art works for a while. The church ground-plan is in the form of a Latin Cross, the nave of the new construction serving as a transept which takes up the entire inside width of the seventeenth century Jesuit temple. This section of the building isn't arched. Its coffered ceiling, somewhat higher than the central nave vault of the ancient part, increases the impression of space which contributes by the way to the appeasement and happiness of the visitor. A secondary room finds itself on either side of the new nave, as well as a gallery. The left gallery above the chapel of the Sacred Heart is destined to the Grand-Ducal Family, the other gallery being reserved for the choir of the cathedral. The whole formed by those galleries, the pointed arches in the form of which they open on the nave and the massive pillars supporting the mentioned arches is very imposing. The plastered coat on the wall above the galleries is adorned with coats of arms of the states, towns and abbeys of the former Duchy of Luxembourg and its neighbouring lands at the time of the election of the Comforter of the Afflicted as the patroness of the country in 1678. The high altar which the brothers Martel had manufactured in 1939 was replaced by another one consisting in a simple block of marble. That change took place upon the renovation of the chancel carried out by the architects Léon Loschetter and Michael Heintz so that it includes the modified liturgical demands established on the occasion of the Consilium Vatican II. In the axis of the altar at the far end of the chancel one can observe the image of the Comforter of the Afflicted. That image and the bishop's throne are precious items adorned with a great beauty. The statue portraying the said image is carved in polychromatic lime wood. Daniel Müller may be considered as the likely creator of this art work since it resembles much the image of the Immaculate Conception of Montaigu in Belgium and pursuant of the records the stated sculptor was asked by the Jesuits to carve several copies of our Lady of Montaigu in 1615. The same sculptor hew in 1616 the nice fountain finding itself in the left passageway and which therefore happily enough still exists. At first sight that fountain looks like a holy water stoup. Curiously, the statue of the Virgin is dressed in accordance with the relevant customs adopted in the late Middle Ages so that the stylized gowns are changed according to the different religious festivals and pilgrimages, which is something very interesting to see. There are some very splendid paintings in the cathedral. Worth being attentively observed are the Adoration of the Magi on the left wall of the nave, attributed to the school of Rubens in Antwerp, and on the opposite side the Immaculate Conception and Assumption dating back to the 17th century. On the same side as that where the Adoration of the Magi painting is there is also a a magnificent tapestry made in Brussels in the 17th century by J. Goenot depicting Moise before the burning bush. The stained-glass windows are also very nice. Some of them, made in the middle of the 19th century, depict the life of Our Lady. Some others were produced in the twentieth century. Among the latter, that representing St. Kunigunde embellishes the former left side chapel. That in the former side chapel on the right by the artist Emil Probst portrays St. Willibrord, remembered as the apostle founder of the Abbey of Echternach. The stained-glass window at the back of the gallery above the portal represents the Comforter of the Afflicted as patroness of the town of Luxembourg. It's an emblematic work handed by the Government of Luxembourg as a votive gift after the Second World War. Besides, the glass paintings of the monumental windows in the enlarged part of the temple amounts to the main artistic accent of the stated part. They give a special character not only to the chancel but also to the transept and the old part of the building and fill the whole interior with the festive radiance of a multicoloured tapestry. Among the said stained-glass windows those attributable to Louis Barillet are of quite a remarkable quality. One can accede easily to the crypt from the western portal by going down a staircase leading to it from the hall or the antechamber. That crypt, dedicated to St. Peter, is a place of national importance inasmuch as it contains the burial vaults of the Luxemburgish bishops and the members of the Grand-Ducal Family. At each side of the entrance there is a bronze lion holding the Luxemburgish coat of arms. They are the work of Auguste Trémont. The burial vault itself is situated underneath the chancel of the ancient Jesuit church. Among other interesting elements in that crypt it's possible to watch also the tomb containing the remains of John of Luxembourg, King of Bohemia, known as John the Blind. From the foregoing it comes out that the Church of Our Lady of Luxembourg is a stunning edifice due to both its size, its beauty and the successful combination of the old and new elements, which is crucially important for architectural design of the extension. That temple ranks among the most remarkable Luxemburgish architectural creations of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century Flemish artistic tendencies in which the transition from the renaissance to the early baroque took place. Once inside, a feeling of peace together with charm and delight can be experienced thanks to the stupendous atmosphere and the rich and appropriate decoration there existing. Likewise, the outline of the new building in the townscape, with the harmonious variety of the pyramidal roofs is also marvellous. The Cathedral has therefore a fantastic profile thus making it an outstanding feature of the city of Luxembourg. On the basis of all the foregoing the visit of that church is thus a must while in Luxembourg or somewhere near its borders with the neighbouring countries.
4. Dent Creuse
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 127 reviews
Reviewed By DavidM083
I traveled here with a cousin to spend a day in Luxembourg City. The Dent Creuse and the Old City Fortress was the main "target" of our visit. We were not disappointed. Interesting to see and beautiful views of the city from here. A visit is highly recommended.
5. Mudam Luxembourg Modern Art Museum
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 534 reviews
Mudam Luxembourg – Musée d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean opened in 2006 in a purpose-built building designed by the renowned Sino-American architect Ieoh Ming Pei and located in the Park Draï Eechelen, overlooking the historic city of Luxembourg. Through its collection, exhibitions, programmes and partnerships, Mudam Luxembourg aims to advance its mission to present the most relevant art of our times.
Reviewed By Albia-Newton - Weston super Mare, United Kingdom
A fantastic building with some great exhibits. Nice spaces to facilitate the appreciation of the artworks on display. Well worth a visit
6. Pont Du Chateau
7. Luxembourg City Hall
8. Court of Justice of the European Union
9. Quartier Gare
10. European Court of Auditors building
Overall Ratings
3.0 based on 2 reviews
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