Mexico City Cathedral

The biggest  Cathedral in the Americas? (Flickr : Pinkitron)

The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven is the  Cathedral of the Roman Catholic diocese of Mexico.and has been described as the largest Cathedral in the Americas. 

I have never set eyes on this but I am always fascinated by big buildings! As we shall see it is not strictly speaking Baroque but then many of my choices in this blog are a mixture. It was built on the foundations of the former Aztec sacred precinct and main temple of their capital city Tenochtitlan. Parts of the old temple were used to fill canals or as building material in foundations or ground walls. The first building was started in 1525-1532 by the conqueror Hernan Cortes.The present building took shape from 1573-1813 around the original church,The Spanish architect Claudio de Arciniega made the plans and can be described as the father of the present cathedral.  Priority in planning had to be given to lay firm foundations on the soft ground of a dry lake bed in an earthquake zone. By 1615 the walls were only up to half the proposed height but eight vaulkts had been completed. It was consecrated in 1656. It is 360 feet long by 179feet. It is a real merger of styles and incorporates Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical elements, and is built of basalt and grey sandstone. There are four facades,and 16 chapels with paintings attributed to Zurburan and Murillo. The two bell towers with  the 25 bells are important. They could announce disaster like earthquakes or good news like a fiesta or some kind of  victory. . The interior has 3 aisles There are 2 large 18th century organs which were damaged in a recent fire. They promise to be really exciting with the usual array of protruding chamade reeds. 

Adjoining is the Sagrario Metropolitano which is of the Cathedral. The Sagrario serves the local parish and was inaugurated in 1768. It is a great example of Mexican Churrigueresque style, and is the work of Lorenzo Rodriguez (1704?-1774) a Spanish born architect and Pedro Patino Ixtolinque, a native born sculptor.

Much more could be said about this hhuge building. Maybe someone will add some material / show their enthusiasm! I have never got to Mexico and is not Mexico City  the biggest city  in the world?  

Interior (Flickr : VasenkaPhotography)

La Romanesca con Cinque Mutanze - Antonio Valente.

                  Mexico City Cathedral  before 1967

Witley Court

Imagine finding a Baroque church  with ornate interior in regular use next to a huge stately home ravaged by fire in 1937, in the middle of the country! St Michael and All Angels Witley Court!
The church was originally built in two years (1733-5) to the west of the Court by Thomas, 2nd Lord Foley to designs possibly by James Gibbs (1682-1754). It had a plain brick exterior to match the  Court as it was then. It has always been a parish church rather than a family chapel.

In 1747 something remarkable happened. The Duke of Chandos had built his great house at Canons, at Stanmore, norh London. THis included a chapel designed by James Gibbs built before 1719. After that he had lost a  fortune and after his death in 1744 the estate at Canons had to be solf off. Foley found out about the chapel and bought  the box pews, several ceiling paintings by Antonio Bellucci (1654-1726), 10 stained glass windows  in 38 sections filling 5 crates, and the ornamental organ case of the instrument played by Handel.  The paintings could be moved because they were on canvas and could be rolled up. The plasterwork by Giovanni Bagutti could not be dismounted so detailed drawings and moulds were made so they could be recreated at Witley by Italian stucco workers. Therefore elaborate plasterwork  replaced the original ceiling at Witley, suspended by a timber framework. They needed to lighten the weight of this ceiling so they employed a new invention - papier mache - by Henry Clay of Birmingham, and therefore some of what we see today employs guilded papier mache.

Luckily the church at Witley was roughly the same size as the Canons chapel. The windows required wooden frames to hold them with a golden yellow border at the bottom to fit the required space.

The disastrous fire at the Court in 1937 led to problems and decline and it was only in the 1960s that parish members took the initiative to renovate. The major restoration of 1993-4 was followed by the cupola repair and guilding of the dome in 2004/5.

Perhaps we may regret the loss of the box pews and their replacement by Victorian pews. Alas the organ pipes went elsewhere and what you hear today is a rebuild by Nicholson of Worcester from 1860. However it is a remarkbale interior and anyone who has loved the Stanmore church should not miss this one!

Look at that organ case! (Flickr : Ed Jeavens)

What an interior (Flickr bv14092)

Exterior view  (Flickr : Richard Wise)

Look at that ceiling (Fickr bvl4092)