καιρός remembered

A statue of liberty

In 1674, during a severe storm, the nave of the Gothic cathedral in Utrecht collapsed, and from amidst the rubble one must have been able to see the choir and the apse, which were still standing. The nave had collapsed because it had never been properly completed when the church was built in the 14th century. Fortunately, the church tower at the other end of the nave withstood the storm. At over 100 metres in height, it was – and still is – the tallest bell tower in the Netherlands.

The rubble was cleared away, and since then the tower and what remains of the church have been separated by Domplein. The life-size image of the interior, as it must have appeared after the storm, is based on a photograph that has been temporarily affixed to the enormous brick wall enclosing the church.

Since 5 May (our Liberation Day) 1949, the statue of the woman with the burning torch has stood in the nave. She symbolises the resistance against the German occupation during the Second World War. With her torch, she shows us the way to freedom.

Photo of the week: War resistance monument and Dom Church, Domplein square, Utrecht, Netherlands 2020