Archaeologists and conservators working inside Magdeburg Cathedral have revealed new insights into the ongoing restoration and investigation of the tomb of Emperor Otto the Great, one of medieval Europe’s most influential rulers.
The large-scale conservation project, launched in January 2025, is being carried out jointly by the Saxony-Anhalt Cultural Foundation and the State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology of Saxony-Anhalt in collaboration with the Evangelical Cathedral Parish and the Evangelical Church in Central Germany.
The work focuses on preserving the severely damaged tomb of Otto I, whose reign laid the foundations for the later Holy Roman Empire. Located in the cathedral’s High Choir, the monument is regarded as one of Germany’s most important medieval royal burials.
Concerns over the condition of the tomb emerged during routine inspections in 2024, when conservators identified significant structural deterioration affecting the limestone sarcophagus and its marble cover slab.
As part of the restoration programme, specialists removed the sarcophagus from its original position earlier this year using a specially designed transport system. The monument was transferred into a protective enclosure inside the cathedral, where restoration work is now underway.
According to researchers, the damage was caused primarily by corroding iron nails and clamps inserted during 19th-century repairs, combined with moisture and salt rising from beneath the cathedral floor. The expansion of the rusting metal threatened to crack the stone structure.
Conservation teams are now removing the corroded iron elements and cleaning the reused antique marble lid, which weighs around 300 kilograms.
The restoration process is following a previous phase in the investigation in which the tomb was opened and all of its contents examined. Anthropological and genetic examinations of the remains recovered from the damaged wooden coffin helped to verify the identity of Otto I, also known as Otto the Great. The findings were announced in March 2026.
The emperor’s remains are scheduled to be reinterred on September 1, 2026, in a newly designed coffin being created through an artistic competition organised by the Saxony-Anhalt Art Foundation.
At the same time, archaeologists are conducting excavations beneath the tomb site to investigate the structure’s foundations and the surrounding medieval layers beneath the cathedral floor.
The excavation revealed that the sarcophagus rested on large sandstone blocks, some of which bear late medieval stonemasons’ marks, suggesting the tomb had been repositioned several times throughout history. Researchers also discovered heavily corroded iron wedges that had once been used to level the structure.
Beneath the foundations, archaeologists uncovered layers of rubble and construction fill linked to multiple medieval and early modern building phases in the cathedral’s High Choir. Investigators also re-examined a long-known but poorly understood system of subterranean passages beneath the choir floor, some of which may date back to the Middle Ages.
Despite the extensive investigation, archaeologists found no evidence indicating that Otto’s tomb occupied the same location in the cathedral’s earlier predecessor building, leaving the question of the emperor’s original burial site unresolved.
A variety of artefacts have also been recovered during the excavations, including coins, glass beads, fragments of crystalline gypsum once used as window glazing, glazed roof tiles, ceramics, clothing pins, bones, and painted plaster fragments from earlier cathedral decorations.
One unusual discovery was a lead bullet found beneath the floor, offering a reminder of Magdeburg’s turbulent history.
Officials said the project is designed to balance conservation work with continued public access to the cathedral. Religious services remain unaffected, while important features of the High Choir — including the famous 13th-century sculptures of Saint Maurice and Saint Catherine — remain visible to visitors.
Information panels and digital displays installed near the enclosed tomb area are being regularly updated to keep the public informed about new discoveries and the progress of the conservation effort.
Otto I, born in 912 and crowned emperor in 962, transformed the political landscape of medieval Europe by reviving imperial rule in Western and Central Europe after the collapse of the Carolingian Empire. He died in 973 and was buried in Magdeburg Cathedral alongside his wife Editha, who had died nearly three decades earlier.
The emperor’s tomb has occupied a central place in the cathedral’s choir since the reconstruction of the building in the 13th century and remains one of the most significant royal burial monuments in Germany.
Sources : idw
