The German city of Cologne is considering dropping a depiction of its historic Christian cathedral from the city’s logo. Some have criticised the proposed change and called for residents to speak out against the city government.
The local city government has stated that it will be producing a new city logo that will not include Cologne Cathedral, well-known for its massive height of 515 feet and status as one of the largest Gothic-style churches in Europe.
According to the government, the logo is changing because the 20-year old current logo is supposedly too complex, with a so-called brand analysis alleging that it is “Unfashionable, old-fashioned, bulky, [and] emotionless,” newspaper Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger reports.
Logo of the city of Cologne featuring two spires representing the city’s historic Roman Catholic cathedral. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
While a new logo is officially just a proposal from the city government at present, a spokesman for current leftist mayor, Henriette Reker, claimed that the change of the logo had already been decided upon and the government would not change their minds on the rebranding.
Some have criticised the new proposed logo, including former Cologne mayor Fritz Schramma, who spoke out about the changes.
“I don’t usually interfere in current city politics, but now this is enough for me,” he said.
“One would like to be objective, professional about the (necessary?) modification of the city logo. But after this unqualified, inaccurate judgment of an advertising agency, I have to get in touch as a former mayor and co-creator of the previous logo.”
Roman Catholic priest Robert Kleine, of the Cologne Cathedral, added: “The new logo and the slogan are arbitrary. It was good for us in Cologne to show that it is we who have the cathedral.”
While the Cologne Cathedral has been a major world landmark since its completion in 1880, the city has in recent years become more known as the site of mass sex attacks on New Year’s Eve in 2015, at the height of the migrant crisis.
A year after the attacks it was revealed that there had been at least 1,300 reported victims of sexual assault, robbery, and even rape. Of the attackers, who were mostly comprised of migrants from the Middle East and North Africa, very few were arrested and even fewer were convicted, with officials accused of initially trying to cover up the scandal.
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