The roof

mirroring history

When St. Stephen’s acquires a new gothic nave in the 15th century, 2000 square meters of larch wood is required for the roof and timbering. That’s the roughly the same as a wood the size of Vienna’s Josefstadt district. By the 18th century the roof is already severely damaged and needs to be completely renovated. Instead of wooden shingles, 230.000 coloured, glazed tiles are employed in the oriental zigzag pattern which is en vogue at that time. On the night of April 11, 1945, a fire started by plunderers in the shops opposite destroys much of the roof and interior. In spite of their own material hardship at the end of the war, the Viennese take it upon themselves to restore St. Stephen’s to its former glory. 7000 tonnes of debris is extracted from the church and Vienna’s bombsites provide raw materials for the rebuilding of the cathedral. Steel is used to replace the truss and the tiles are recreated from the fragments and organised according to the original plans. By the way, the tiles have a slope of 80% so that snow won’t settle on them and the roof can be admired all year round.