The Vienna St. Stephans cathedral is not just a large church with its “normal” functions. He is a treasure trove of secrets and harbors a number of curiosities, whose meaning is known only to the initiated. Who knows for example, that it shown on the main entrance a male and a female sexual organ. Yes, among the heathen towers emblazoned a penis and a vagina. Of course, not so explicitly carved that you would recognise right away. 

The portal system is flanked by a double column, which reach up to half the height at the two round windows. If you look close on top of those two columns you find a phallus (left) and a vulva (right). These characters are highly unusual for a Christian, and even more so for a Catholic church. Historians interpret the two double-columns as the pillars Boaz and Jachin. They both are the portal flanking columns of the temple in Jerusalem, which had been given by King Solomon in order accordingly. At the time it was at Freemasons tradition to take up this symbolism as a sign of professional successor.

The genitals at the end of the column, however, does not belong to this Solomonic symbolism or the Freemasons tradition. The gender representations mean rather the male-active and female-passive principle. The exact purpose of the builder seems not recorded and therefore leaves room for conjecture and interpretations. But there is plenty of exhilarating, to be found on an arch-Catholic Church two so revealing symbols.

Main entrance

Left column

Right column