Destination: FRANCE
Sights * Cathédrale Notre-Dame * Les Grandes Places * Musée Alsacien * Musée Archéologique * Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain * Musée des Beaux-Arts * Musée de l'Œuvre Notre-Dame * Petite France	Cathédrale Notre-Dame A superb example of Gothic architecture, the Cathédrale Notre-Dame (Cathedral of Our Lady) dominates old Strasbourg; its single steeple soars to 466 feet. Built between 1176 and 1439, it stands in a cobbled square on the site of an earlier basilica. A team of masons from Chartres worked on it in the 13th century, creating superb statuary and a harmonious interior, subtly lit by fine stained-glass windows. The main facade, a riot of sinuous, graceful biblical figures and saints, was completed half a century later. A platform constructed in the late 14th century to connect the two towers is reached by 329 stairs and offers commanding views of the city. The astronomical clock in the south transept is a huge timepiece with a planetary dial constructed in the 1540s. Its automated figures perform daily at 12:30 (entrance at the south doorway noon-12:20), when the Apostles march before Christ, a cock crows and beats its wings, and the seven ages of man can be seen. The cathedral's loveliest sculpture is the Pilier des Anges (Pillar of the Angels), a wondrously carved pillar entwined with the four evangelists and trumpeting angels, all heralding the Last Judgment. Address: place de la Cathédrale Open: Cathedral: daily 7-11:30 and 12:40-7. Platform: daily 8:30-7, Jul.-Aug.; 9-6:30, Apr.-Jun. and in Sep.; 9-5:30, Mar. and Oct.; 9-4:30, rest of year. Cathedral closed during Mass Restaurant: Au Bon Vivant Bus: 11, 14, 21, 24; tram A, D Admission: Cathedral free; platform Inexpensive; clock Inexpensive	COUNTRY France REGION French Riviera CITIES Paris Lyon Nice Strasbourg   Things To Know   Sights   Essential Info   Features MAPS World Europe TRAVEL BOOK