St Paul's Cathedral, Bendigo, is an Anglican cathedral in Australia. It is the cathedral church of the
Diocese of Bendigo in central
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
.
History & Architecture
The building was designed by the
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
Robert A. Love. The nave was dedicated in November 1868, the
bell tower
A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tow ...
in 1873 and the
chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse.
...
and
transept
A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building with ...
s in 1927. Originally a
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
, St Paul's became the diocese's cathedral in 1981.
[St Pauls's Cathedral, Bendigo website]
Retrieved 3 October 2012
The building is constructed of red brick with stone dressings in an early
Gothic style
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
and is laid out in a simple
cruciform
Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design.
Cruciform architectural plan
Christian churches are commonly describe ...
plan comprising a six bay nave, transepts and sanctuary.
Internally the cathedral is decorated with
stained-glass windows
Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...
, several wooden
sculptures
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
and an ''
opus sectile
''Opus sectile'' is a form of pietra dura popularized in the ancient and medieval Roman world where materials were cut and inlaid into walls and floors to make a picture or pattern. Common materials were marble, mother of pearl, and glass. The ...
'' reflecting a
high church
The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...
tradition.
St Paul’s
peal of eight bells was cast by
Mears & Stainbank of London which arrived on the
Cutty Sark
''Cutty Sark'' is a British clipper ship. Built on the River Leven, Dumbarton, Scotland in 1869 for the Jock Willis Shipping Line, she was one of the last tea clippers to be built and one of the fastest, coming at the end of a long period ...
. They were first rung on
Good Friday
Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Holy ...
, 10 April 1873. The tenor is 14
hundredweight
The hundredweight (abbreviation: cwt), formerly also known as the centum weight or quintal, is a British imperial and US customary unit of weight or mass. Its value differs between the US and British imperial systems. The two values are disti ...
however it is prohibited to ring the bells due to structural problems of the building itself.
The 1883 organ, with its colourful pipes, was rebuilt in 1957 and further modified in the 1990s.
The building suffered from structural concerns for some time. From 1880 the bell tower was unstable and bells were not able to be rung but only chimed. This eventually required the bells to be reinstalled in a lower position. In 2009 the entire building was closed to the public for seven years.
[ The cathedral was formally renewed and reopened on 5 June 2016 by the Most Revd ]Philip Freier
Philip Leslie Freier (born 9 February 1955) is an Australian Anglican bishop. He has been the 13th Anglican Diocese of Melbourne, Archbishop of Melbourne since 16 December 2006. He served as Anglican Primate of Australia, Primate of Australia ...
.
See also
* List of cathedrals in Australia
References
External links
St Paul's Cathedral official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Pauls Cathedral Bendigo
Anglican churches in Victoria (state)
Gothic Revival church buildings in Australia
Cathedrals in Victoria (state)
Buildings and structures in Bendigo
Anglican cathedrals in Australia
19th-century Anglican church buildings
Bendigo