The Cathedral of Lausanne

A master work of European art heritage and the centrepiece of the remarkable collection of 13th-century stained-glass windows is the Rose Window. Composed of 105 medallions, it depicts the mediaeval view of the world revolving around God the creator.

 The cathedral lookout

“C’est le guet, il a sonné dix, il a sonné dix…” (“It’s the watch, the hour of 10 has struck…”). If you wander in the Cité’s pedestrian streets at night, don’t be surprised to hear the watchman’s call echoing over the old town’s rooftops. Perched in the belfry, 75 metres above the ground, he announces the time every hour from 10 at night to 2 in the morning to the four points of the horizon, carrying on a Lausanne tradition that dates back to 1405.

The “Cathé” as Lausanners affectionately call it, the most emblematic symbol of the Vaud capital, is also a concert venue with a programming that highlights its organ, a unique instrument worldwide both in terms of design (thanks to the American organ builder Fisk and the Italian designer Giugiaro) and its technical features (French classic and symphonic, German baroque and romantic).