Die Kathedrale in Hongkong (Hong Kong [Catholic] Cathedral)

Klaus
Wed, 11/27/2024 - 03:46
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Die Kathedrale in Hongkong (Hong Kong [Catholic] Cathedral)

Source:  Weltmuseum Wien (Vienna World Museum), Collection Max Ritter von Lommer ((1864 Padua - 1902 Monastyryska (Ukraine)

Roman Catholic Cathedral c.1895 (see comment below).  Very similar to the photo below, but without the spire.

Catholic Cathedral on Caine Road
Catholic Cathedral on Caine Road , by Herostratus
Date picture taken
1895 (year is approximate)
Tags
church
cathedral
Roman Catholic Cathedral
Author(s)
Weltmuseum Wien
Gallery
1890s Hong Kong
Shows place(s)
Roman Catholic Cathedral (2nd & current location) [1888- ]
House named "Glenealy" - IL 57 [????-c.1925]

Comments

Hi Klaus,

That's a sharp view of the cathedral. I note that it shows the central tower of the cathedral with a large spire on top, but that on the second photo the spire is gone.

Looking at https://gwulo.com/node/5462/photos the big spire seems to disappear some time in the mid 1890s, so the main photo should be older than that.

Regards, David

Hi David,

It is difficult to judge the date of the photo because most photos from the 1890s do not have an exact and reliable date. However, it seems - as you said - that the spire was there in the first days and disappeared during the 1890s.

Often a disappearance is connected to a typhoon, and there was one on the 29 July 1896. I tried to find informations in the Public Works Report for 1896, but there is none. The report for the Botanical Gardens refers to "great loss and injury of shrubs and trees". This is close by and might have also damaged the cathedral. 

Therefore I set the date to c.1895.

P.S. On the main page of the cathedral, it is referred: 

  • 1937 The central spire was destructed during a typhoon

An incorrect date?

The central tower of the Cathedral was damaged during the typhoon of 1937. As mentioned above, the original central spire disappeared in the 1890s. Not sure when.

For reference, mention is made in the Dublin Review July-October 1889 here that the height of the top of the spire was 135 feet and up to the underside of the central tower was 90 feet.

The Chronicle and Directory ......... for 1894 here mentions that "The Roman Catholic Cathedral is situated at Glenealy ravine, near the Botanic Gardens, and is a large structure in the Gothic style, the bell tower is at present incomplete, and the central tower is furnished with an insignificant wooden apology for a spire."

Lots of information and photos at "Divine Powers: Historic Ecclesiastical Buildings in Central, Hong Kong" . Link: https://foa-media.arch.hku.hk/media/upload/2023/11/HKU_Central_Eng_final.pdf