St Stephen's Cathedral

Lonely Planet review

The stupendous Cathédral St-Etienne, built by joining two churches together in the 14th century, is famous for being superlative in France: it has the highest nave (41m) and the greatest surface area of stained glass windows (nearly 6500sq m). Try to visit on a bright day and after dark - the cathedral is beautifully illuminated at night until 01:00 .

Built between 1220 and 1522, St Stephen's Cathedral is famed for its veritable curtains of 13th- to 20th-century stained glass, among the finest in France. The superb flamboyant Gothic windows (1504), on the main wall of the north transept arm, provide a remarkable stylistic contrast with the glorious Renaissance windows on the main wall of the south transept arm, created a mere two decades later. There are windows by Chagall on the western wall of the north transept arm (yellow predominates) and in the nearby section of the ambulatory (over the entrance to the Grande Sacristie; reds and blues set the tone), where you'll also find the treasury. In the 15th-century crypt (below the altar) you can see a 15th-century sculpture of the Graoully ('grau-lee' or 'grau-yee'), a dragon that is said to have terrified pre-Christian Metz.