Date

Circa 1910

In the upper gallery, visitors can view the marble throne on which 32 Holy Roman Emperors were coronated between 936 and 1531. The throne dates to Carolingian times and was likely used by Charlemagne himself, though not for his coronation, which took place in Rome. The throne is very simple, consisting of four ancient marble slabs held together by bronze clamps. Its six marble steps, partly carved from an ancient column, allude to Solomon's throne. Aachen is Aix-la-Chapelle in French. Aachen Cathedral, frequently referred to as the "Imperial Cathedral" (Kaiserdom), was known as the "Royal Church of St. Mary at Aachen" during the Middle Ages. For 600 years, from 936 to 1531, the Aachen chapel (Palantine Chapel) was the church of coronation for 30 German kings and 12 queens. Dedicated to the Virgin, the chapel was nearing completion in 798, according to a letter of Alcuin. A lost inscription inside the building ascribed its construction to Odo of Metz, an individual otherwise unknown (see Schlosser, 1896). Charlemagne was buried in his chapel in 814. In 1165, through the instigation of Frederick Barbarossa, he was canonized, and his remains drew many pilgrims. Between 1355 and 1414 the eastern square apse was replaced by a double-bay apsed choir with extremely tall traceried windows and a quadripartite rib vault. The chapel was designated the cathedral of a newly constituted diocese in 1802.