A modern altar, in the mediæval style, has replaced the seventeenth-century Renaissance work, which is manifestly for the better, judging from the old engravings that one sees of the former unlovely altar.
The glass throughout is hardly of the excellence that one might expect, but the effect is undeniably good. A portion of that in the Chapel of the Three Kings is a relic of the old Romanesque cathedral, while that of the north aisle of the nave dates from the time of Dürer.
That of the windows of the Chapel of the Three Kings has been called one of the most[{259}] beautiful pages out of the book of the fifteenth-century glass-worker. The subject referred to is, of course, "The Adoration of the Magi."
The capitals of the columns of the nave and choir are superbly foliaged, and add much to the general sumptuous appearance of the interior.
Before the Chapel of the Three Kings are many tombs; the most remarkable being that which covered the remains of Marie de Medici, who died in exile at Cologne in 1642. One knows that after the death of the crafty Richelieu the body of the queen was transported to St. Denis, there to rest with others of the long line of kings and queens there buried, but the heart remained at Cologne, and, next to the relics of the Three Kings, it is the chief "sight" of interest to inquisitive tourists.
The casket in which repose the relics of the Three Magi is a masterwork of the goldsmith's art of the twelfth century. Incrusted on its surface were more than fifteen hundred precious jewels, although some have disappeared in the course of the ages. Among them is a topaz of monstrous size, which excites the admiration of all who set eyes upon it.
In 1794 the canons transported the casket to Arnsberg, to Prague, and to Frankfort,[{260}] their financial difficulties of the time forcing them to sell the crowns with which the skulls were adorned. Since then other coronets have replaced the first, set with gems and stones brought from Bohemia.
On the 23d July, 1164, these relics were first deposited in the ancient cathedral, from which they were subsequently transferred to the new edifice amid much ceremony.
In their first resting-place they were guarded only by a simple iron grille up to the time when the archbishop Maximilian Henry constructed the ædicule which encloses them to-day.
On the pediment of this screen is sculptured an "Adoration of the Magi," by Michel Van der Voorst of Antwerp. There are also figures of St. Felix and St. Nabor, and two female figures bearing the arms of the Metropolitan Chapter.