Oslo Cathedral

This is Oslo's third attempt at a cathedral. The medieval St. Hallvard's Cathedral was destroyed when the entire city was relocated after the great fire of 1624. Its replacement, Holy Trinity, burned down after only fifty years. So when the foundation stone was laid for this building in 1694, you can imagine the architects were thinking hard about fire resistance. The current cathedral was consecrated on November 7, 1697, in Dutch Baroque style, and it has managed to stay standing ever since.

The interior has been reworked multiple times. Architect Alexis de Chateauneuf controversially gutted the original Baroque furnishings in the mid-nineteenth century and replaced them with neo-Gothic interiors — a decision later reversed under Arnstein Arneberg, who restored much of the original character. The ceiling murals were painted by Hugo Lous Mohr between 1936 and 1950. The stained glass windows are by Emanuel Vigeland — the lesser-known brother of sculptor Gustav Vigeland — whose day job was sacred art but whose private work was spectacularly profane (more on that if you visit his mausoleum across town).

After the July 22, 2011 terror attacks — when 77 people were killed in the Oslo bombing and the Utøya mass shooting, Norway's deadliest incident since World War II — the cathedral became the focal point of national mourning. A vast sea of roses appeared outside. Today, a permanent memorial of one thousand iron roses stands beside the cathedral, each one unique, handcrafted by survivors, victims' families, and well-wishers from around the world.

The cathedral is also where Crown Prince Haakon married Mette-Marit in 2001 — a ceremony that was controversial because the bride was a single mother whose former partner had a drug conviction. Norway moved past it. The cathedral has seen worse.