The Museum of Perth chronicles the social, cultural, political and architectural history of Perth.
St Mary's Cathedral
The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or as it's commonly known, St Mary's Cathedral, is the seat of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Perth and the largest religious centre in the city.
St Mary's Cathedral in 2015, with the original building clearly a darker shade than the much lighter expansion works (Supplied: Steven Doig Photography)
The largest and most grand of all of Perth's cathedrals, St Mary's, in Victoria Square, has been the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Perth for over 150 years. Originally built in 1865, the cathedral has undergone three separate expansions throughout its life. The largest of which, began in 1926 and was only completed in 2009, making it the longest single construction project in Western Australia's history.
The Cathedral was partially funded by various members of the Roman Catholic Church in 1863 with the foundation stone being laid by Bishop of Perth Rosendo Salvado on 8 February 1863. Construction took place slowly throughout 1864 and labour was primarily provided by members of the Order Of Saint Benedict, colloquially known as "Black Monks", who made the journey from Subiaco each day on foot to the site in Victoria Square. Work was temporarily suspended during the summer of 1864 due to a lack of funding before being blessed and officially opened on 29 January 1865. Pictured, St Mary's Cathedral in 1898, before a spire was added to the bell tower. (Supplied: State Library of Western Australia)
Interior of St Mary's Cathedral, 1930, while expansion works take place on the exterior. (Supplied: State Library of Western Australia)
During the interwar years, the desire for a larger cathedral grew, culminating in 1924 when the first designs were submitted. Architect Michael Cavanagh's winning concept saw the majority of the original building being converted into the nave of the much larger cathedral, with the addition of a new sanctuary and a large Academic Gothic transept to be added to the eastern side. The foundation stone was laid on 25 April 1926 and construction continued for four years until, due to the onset of the Great Depression, the scope of the project was reduced and the works were completed in 1930. The unfinished design was opened to the public on 4 May 1930. Pictured, construction works in 1929 (Supplied: State Library of Western Australia)
"After more than a week of heavy rain, the weather broke yesterday in time to honour the women Catholics of Perth with delightful sunshine for their foundation stone ceremony in connection with the reconstruction of St Mary's Cathedral... the foundation stone was laid at 10:15p.m. by Archbishop Clune of Perth, in the presence of the hierarchy and a vast crowd which overflowed the cathedral and a large portion of its grounds."
-The Daily Mail, 27 April 1926
St Mary's in 1966, looking south towards the river along Lord St, East Perth (Supplied: State Library of Western Australia)
Aerial view of Victoria Square, with Royal Perth Hospital partially visible to the north, 1987 (Supplied: State Library of Western Australia)
After expansions ceased in 1930, St Mary's stood unfinished for over 70 years until it was closed in August of 2006, partially due to the need for renovations to repair decades of weather deterioration. The funds for the expansion were sourced from various private estates, as well as State and Federal grants totalling over $7 million, the project budget would go on to blow out to almost $33 million. Architect Peter M. Quinn designed the new expansion with a second tower and spire being added to the western facade. The floor space inside was widened with two large circular glass extensions to the nave being built to the north and south. During construction, several remains of Perth's first bishops were uncovered which resulted in the plans being further developed to include a new crypt to house the remains, as well as an underground parish centre. St Mary's Cathedral, as it stands today, was officially opened by then Archbishop of Perth Barry Hickey on 8 December 2009, a full 83 years since the expansions first began.
Looking east from the interior of St Mary's Cathedral, 2014. The stained glass mosaic is a replication of Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper". (Supplied: Wikimedia Commons)
The newly renovated interior, looking west through the new curved facade, 2014 (Supplied: wikiwand)