The bishop's residence has been located in Brixen since the sixth century. Between 960 and 990 AD, Brixen supplanted nearby Säben as the episcopal see, and has retained its status since that time.
Brixen Cathedral is the highest-ranking church in South Tyrol, and historically one of the most interesting. Today, the cathedral thus reflects almost all architectural styles from the Early Romanesque. The original Ottonian building took on a new Romanesque design in the twelfth century, gaining a three-aisled nave with crypt and three apses in addition to two front towers. There were more additions in the Gothic and Baroque periods.
The North Tower got its early Baroque style between 1610 and 1613. Large-scale modifications were made between 1745 and 1754. Theodor Benedetti’s high altar and the statues and frescoes by Paul Troger, Joseph Schöpf, Dominikus Molling and Michelangelo Unterperger originated from this period. Jacob Pirchstaller’s classical vestibule dates to 1783.
The cathedral is open daily.
References:The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.