Cathedral of the Good Shepherd: Architecture
The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd is built in a restrained Renaissance style. Its porticos are in the Palladian manner, which was established here by George Drumgoole Coleman. Its plan is in the form of a Latin cross and like all traditional churches, it is orientated east. Its high timber ceiling and its sensitive and harmonious use of round arches lend the building much grace and charm.
The steeple, surmounted by a cross, consists of two sections. The first section is a square with each corner of the square marked by three engaged columns in the Ionic order. On each façade is an arched window. The four façades are topped with pediments ornamented with a circle. The cathedral’s three bells are located inside this section and are decorated with religious motifs. Cast by the Auguste Hildebrand Foundry in Paris, the bells were originally hung for swing chiming, but electric tolling hammers have since replaced the long ropes for stationary chiming. On the second section of the steeple is an octagon with each corner of the octagon marked by an engaged column in the Tuscan order. On each façade is a narrow rectangular window. The eight façades are topped with pediments.
The design of the building is said to have been the result of a competition between two well-known residents, Denis Lesley McSwiney and John Turnbull Thomson, with McSwiney’s design accepted as it was the less expensive of the two. An appeal for funds met with donations from France, the Philippines, China and Singapore’s European community.
The design shows the influence of two famous London churches. The use of the Roman Doric style of architecture was derived from St Paul’s in Covent Garden and the Greek temple-like proportions and belfry from St Martin-in-the-Fields. It was gazetted as a national monument in 1973.
There are six entrances into the cathedral with the one fronting Victoria Street closed to public access. The entrances are porticoed and have heavily moulded pediments. All pediments are ornamented with a moulded circle at the centre and, except for the ones at the ends of the transept and the one fronting Victoria Street, all are surmounted with a cross. The main entrance at the west end of the cathedral serves as the porte-cochère. The two side entrances at the nave are in the form of diminutive porticos and are smaller and less imposing then the entrances at the ends of the transept.
Photograph showing part of the fence surrounding the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd
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