Most medieval cathedrals lost their spires sooner or later. Freiburg Minster (Freiburger Münster) kept its 116-metre Gothic tower, one of the oldest of its kind still standing. Cologne Cathedral’s spires, by comparison, were only finished in the 1800s.

The red sandstone did not ignite easily, which may be one reason the building came through the Second World War bombing. Inside, a cross from around 1200 is the oldest work of art, and the Hosanna bell from 1258 still rings on Friday mornings. Outside, the stonemasons’ workshop kept the building in repair until 1956.

VoiceMap’s Old Town Freiburg tour circles the Minster, from the market stalls at its foot to that workshop, and points out the gargoyles and the altars by Hans Baldung Grien and Hans Holbein the Younger.