Amberg Glaskathedrale

Informally called the ‘glass cathedral’, the Thomas glassworks (now Kristall-Glasfabrik Amberg) was the last building designed by the outstanding Modernist architect, Walter Gropius. It was completed with Alexander Cvijanovic in 1970, the year after Gropius died. The factory was built for Philip Rosenthal and his Thomas crystal works at Amberg, 70 km east of Nuremberg. The buildings use reinforced concrete and glass. A tall, A-shaped nave 100-m long contains the glass furnace. This is connected to buildings for finishing, packing and shipping and a canteen that are sunk below the surrounding grass. Gropius was director of the internationally influential Bauhaus school of art and design from 1919 until it was closed by the Nazi government and he left for Britain and then America. He returned to some German projects after the Second World War.

Guided tours are booked through Amberg city museum and include a multimedia presentation about Gropius, the construction of the ‘glass cathedral’ and glass production.