Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral (Cebu City)

Philippines / Central Visayas / Calero / Cebu City
 cathedral, Roman Catholic church, historic landmark
The Cebu Cathedral is younger than the Diocese of Cebu (created in 1595), as the first church, from 1595, was one of wood, bamboo and thatch. Although stone walls were added, it was in a sorry state according to a 1667 report of Bp. Juan Lopez to the King of Spain. After many false starts to build a more worthy church for the Catholic Bishop, the Spanish military engineer Juan de Ciscara was commissioned in 1719 to design the cathedral. He opted for a cruciform design with short transepts. He placed the altar mayor at the crossing, reserved the apse for the altar de pardon, and placed the choir stalls for the cathedral canon in the nave. Work on the construction was suspended when funds were diverted to military campaigns against slave raiders. Construction began in 1734, was interrupted four years later, resumed in 1741 under Bp. Protasio Cabezas. The facade was completed in 1786 and in 1811 the cathedral was blessed. The completed cathedral departed from Ciscara’s plans. It was renovated in 1829, 1836 when Bp. Santos Marañon, who designed other churches in Cebu, designed and built the bell tower. The cathedral was improved in 1886, during the incumbency of Bishop Gorordo, and in 1939. Damaged during World War II, architect Jose Zaragosa rebuilt the cathedral in 1959. The cathedral’s interior was renovated more recently.

Because of damage caused by World War II and the recent renovation, nothing of the historical interior remains, however, the exterior remains 18th century. The 21 meter high facade is capped by a pediment shaped like a trefoil. The monogram IHS decorates the upper register pediment while small circular openings decorate the lower part. A pair of griffins and bas-relief floral designs fill the pediment. The two story facade is divided vertically by paired columns on a tall plinth and the cornice over the main door is broken and emblazoned with a coat of arms in low relief.
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Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cebu_Metropolitan_Cathedral
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Coordinates:   10°17'45"N   123°54'9"E

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This article was last modified 4 years ago