Basilica of St Mary in the Capitol

The Basilica of St. Maria im Kapitol is the largest of the twelve Romanesque churches in Cologne, identifiable by the unique, trefoil-shaped east end that forms three apses at the rear of the building. Built between ten forty and ten sixty-five on the foundations of a first-century Roman temple, the structure takes its name from the Capitol of the ancient city, which once stood on this same site to honor the gods Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva.