In a further gesture of respect, three crowns symbolising these kings from the east have pride of place on Cologne's coat of arms.
And the honour done to the Magi by this thriving business centre of more than a million people has been well repaid because they, in turn, have given the city not incense, gold and myrrh but money, influence and power.
The Wise Men's presence down the centuries has attracted thousands of pilgrims and, more recently, tourists like me, attracted by their presence to take a break from a luxury cruise down the River Rhine on the Avalon Tapestry.
After all those years of singing, "We three kings of Orient are...", and seeing them depicted on Christmas cards or in tableaux, it was amazing to peer through the gloom and think that here they were.
So how on earth, or in heaven, did these Oriental monarchs end up in Cologne?
Legend has it that the graves of the Wise Men were discovered by Saint Helena, the mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine 1, who in 327 at the age of 80 made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, from which she brought back several holy relics, including pieces of the true cross and the bones of the Magi, which she took to the church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (now Istanbul).
After her death Bishop Eustorgius of Milan was given permission to move the relics to his city - the story goes that he transported them in a huge marble sarcophagus on the back of two little cows - where they were laid to rest in a church later named Sant'Eustorgio in his honour.
There they stayed until 1164 when Rainald von Dassel, chancellor to the Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa and Archbishop of Cologne, exercised a conqueror's privilege and took the relics back to his own cathedral where they have rested ever since.
Clearly the Magi were happy about the move - even if the people of Milan were not - because within a few years Cologne was profiting hugely from the influx of pilgrims. The city's original cathedral, dating back to the 4th century, couldn't cope with the numbers and so it was decided to build something bigger.
Indeed, the plans were so ambitious that they nearly proved too much for the city, the foundation stone being laid in 1248 and the final stone not placed at the top of the south tower until 1880.
Still, it was worth the wait, because the cathedral is truly awe-inspiring, having the largest facade of any church - 61m and 157m high - and its mix of spectacular Gothic architecture and beautiful works of religious art from down the centuries makes it well worth visiting.
And the Magi still exert their influence, not least in protecting their home during World War II, when Allied bombing raids destroyed 90 per cent of the city centre yet left the cathedral almost untouched.
Sadly, the massive destruction means there is not much of the old city to be seen, but one positive outcome was the discovery near the cathedral of some remarkable Roman ruins.
As a result, wandering around the cathedral square you can now take a close look at a section of the original Roman sewage system.
Nearby is a marvellous 1800-year-old Bacchanalian mosaic - apparently once on the floor of a prosperous Roman merchant's house - which came to light during the excavation of an air raid shelter and has now had a museum built over the top to preserve it.
It's an amazing piece of work showing the god of wine and music leaning drunkenly on one of his followers while around them nymphs and satyrs drink, cavort and play music.
It's a timely reminder of the amazing Cologne Carnival which starts at 11.11am every November 11 and by all accounts - sadly, I wasn't there for it - turns into a week of, well, bacchanalia.
Another entertaining bit of art in the city centre is the Dwarf's Well - sculpted in 1899, so it must have survived the bombing - which basically tells the story I used to know as The Shoemaker and the Elves but which Germans evidently call The Tailoress and the Dwarfs.
It's a wonderful depiction of the nosy tailoress sneaking up on the dwarfs who had been finishing off all her garments (and in the process frightening them away).
As it happens I didn't know about any of this - the wise men, Roman ruins, carnival or dwarfs - until I actually went to Cologne.
In fact about the only thing I did know about the city was eau de cologne, the toilet water whose name means "Water of Cologne", which I assumed came from there.
"Of course, yes," said the guide who was showing me round the city.
"Cologne is the city where eau de cologne was made. The perfume shop where it was produced is still in business. We will be visiting it later."
And, sure enough, later on we wandered into one of the city's many leafy squares and the guide pointed to the modest-looking shop on the corner and explained that was where Italian perfumer Giovanni Maria Farina created eau de cologne in 1709 "and his family still run the business there today, making it the oldest perfume company in the world".
Most of the men in our group weren't keen and wandered off to a nearby excavation where you could see traces of the city's old Jewish quarter, preserved as a memorial to the Holocaust.
The women rushed for the chance to buy some Original Eau de Cologne from the firm which invented it.
I peered in the window and mused on the fact that the gifts the three wise men carried on their storied journey - as well as gold - were frankincense and myrrh, which are used in perfumes.
Could it be that they brought the gift of perfume-making here as well?
CHECKLIST
Getting there: Air New Zealand flies to Heathrow, London via both Los Angeles and Hong Kong and has connections to Europe via its Star Alliance partners.
Cruising the Rhine: Avalon Waterways has eight-day Romantic Rhine river cruises, visiting some of Europe's most picturesque regions, from now until October. Cruises are available from Basel to Amsterdam or from Amsterdam to Basel, visiting the towns of Strasbourg, Heidelberg, Mainz, Coblenz and Cologne along the way.
Built in 2006, Avalon Tapestry has a lounge and restaurant at its front, as well as an outside viewing deck. All meals onboard are included and wine is complimentary with dinner.
