St Mary's Cathedral, Hobart

St Mary's Cathedral
St Mary's Cathedral
42°53′09″S 147°19′35″E / 42.88583°S 147.32639°E
Location	Hobart, Tasmania
Country	Australia
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Website	hobart.catholic.org.au/content/history-st-marys-cathedral
History
Founded	12 September 1860
Dedication	Sacred Heart
Dedicated	29 June 1865 rededicated 23 January 1881
Consecrated	14 July 1866
Architecture
Status	Cathedral (since 1860)
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Augustus Pugin[1] Henry Hunter
Style	Gothic architecture
Years built	1822 (first cathedral) 1866 (nave completed) 1881 (Rebuilt)
Groundbreaking	1860
Specifications
Length	84 ft
Width	52 ft
Nave width	18 ft
Nave height	19 ft
Materials	Sandstone
Bells	Ring of 10 Bells and Two Semi-tone
Administration
Parish	Cathedral
Archdiocese	Archdiocese of Hobart
Province	Hobart
Clergy
Archbishop	Julian Porteous

The Cathedral’s origins can be traced back to 1822^[2] when the first permanent Tasmanian priest Reverend Philip Conolly (1786-1839) constructed a temporary wooden chapel near the present Cathedral site and dedicated to God, under the invocation of St. Atirgilius, an "Irish Saint"

The current Cathedral foundation stone was laid in 1860 was re-opened in 1866,^[3] St Mary’s Cathedral is located in Harrington Street, Hobart. The cathedral was built in the style of Gothic architecture.

Structural problems caused by faulty building resulted in the Cathedral being largely dismantled and re-constructed to a modified design between 1876 and 1881.

It is place of worship for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hobart.

St Mary's College is located next to the Cathedral. The College celebrates the Catholic liturgical year by attending Mass.

The Catholic Archbishop of Hobart, Tasmania, Julian Porteous resides at the Cathedral.

The organ at St Mary’s Cathedral, Hobart was built in 1893 by Fincham & Hobday.^[4]

Stained Glass Windows

Dominated by the exquisite Hardman Studio window in the style of a fourteenth century Gothic window; the five lancets depict pivotal scenes from the Gospel and the tracery at the top of the window details heavenly images, from the nineteenth century.

The Rose window in the West end of the Cathedral (1981), the Pentecost Window (1989), and the Heroic and Saintly Women (1995) are other windows specific to the cathedral.

References

1. "St Mary's Church, Hobart: An Unexecuted Pugin Design" (PDF).
2. "HOBART CHURCHES St Mary's Cathedral".
3. "History of St Mary's Cathedral".
4. "Organ Specifications St Mary's Cathedral".