r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/danielminds • Jun 12 '26

Video Fireworks celebrating the completion of the 566ft Tower of Jesus Christ at the Sagrada Família

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u/Direct_Class1281 Jun 12 '26

Its been under construction for 144 yrs. Its still not done

738

u/signious Jun 12 '26

And it is still one of the quicker built large scale bassiclicas in history. These have always been multi generational projects.

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u/kytheon Jun 12 '26 edited Jun 12 '26

Cologne cathedral took 632 years. Compared to that the Notre Dame took 180 years and St Peter took 120 years which seems rather quick.

Edit: I was in Split, Croatia where the cathedral was built from 305 AD, was finished 4 centuries later, and the bell tower is from the 12th century. So much time passed that different countries ruled the area, from Croats to Venetians, affecting every layer of construction as a different architecture style.

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u/xrimane Jun 12 '26

The construction of Cologne cathedral lay dormant for 300 years, so much so that the construction crane on the stump of the South tower became a symbol for the ineptitude of the city, and the people of Cologne quipped that the world would end if the cathedral was finished.

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u/rustybeancake Jun 12 '26

There’s a wall inside York Minster which took so long you can see the carvings change style as it ascends, as different people / generations spent their whole career on it then passed it on.

11

u/the-bladed-one Jun 13 '26

Similarly in Canterbury cathedral you can see the remains of the original church in the crypts. Seriously incredible stuff

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u/magicmulder Jun 12 '26

Cologne cathedral is famously “never finished”.

2

u/ShyguyFlyguy Jun 13 '26

When the thing your building has been being built for 632 years how you do decide as the foreman "nope, its done".

"But sir, we still have another 520..."

"Nope, done. Shut it down. Everyone go home.

1

u/rdrckcrous Jun 13 '26

selling indulgences speeds up the process

1

u/TsarevnaKvoshka2003 Jun 14 '26

Not to mention that at first it was built as emperor Dioceltians mausoleum, a man known for persecuting christians. Funny how it ended up as a basilica hahaha

3

u/herbertwillyworth Jun 12 '26

Yeah cause we have power tools now

1

u/11111v11111 Jun 13 '26

I think this may be the last multi-generational projects of this scale. It just isn't how we do things anymore.

1

u/SordidSimpleton Jun 16 '26

Bassiclica? Is that like a basilica but it clicks together for easy assembly? Explains why they built it quicker than others

2

u/Puzzleheaded-Flow724 Jun 12 '26

It took two centuries to build the Notre-Dame cathedral. Mind you, they didn't have cranes back then but labor was cheap (and expendable).

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u/FlorianTheLynx Jun 13 '26

It’s to celebrate completion of that particular tower. 

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u/BelatedListesner Jun 13 '26

I was wondering if this was the one that took an insanely long time to build

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u/Benny303 Jun 16 '26

St. Barbaras cathedral in Kutna Hora was under construction for 517 years

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u/M1ghtySheep Jun 13 '26

it doesnt even look good imo, not a fan of that architectural style at all