Construction of the cathedral began in Mainz in 975, at the initiative of Archbishop Villigisa and ended essentially in 1239. Construction work was delayed by more than two and a half centuries because of several large fires. In this building crowned Holy Roman Emperor Henry II, Conrad II and Frederick II.

Imposing central tower of the cathedral and its two lateral towers in the years 1767-1773 designed in the Baroque style Ignaz Michael Neumann. The massive bronze door wing on the north side of the cathedral date back to about 1000 a year.

Interior of the cathedral is striking: two huge choir - one of the Romanesque era, another later period; along the central nave - murals depicting the life of Jesus Christ; columns located around gravestones of Mainz archbishops, including the late Gothic tombstone of Hans Bakofrena at the tomb of Archbishop Jakob von Liebenstein, who died in 1508. On the right is cloister with a fountain. Magnificent oak armchairs in the Rococo style by Franz Anton Hermann in 1767, surrounding the altar.