OPENING OF THE NEW ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AT MELBOURNE.

Grey River Argus, Volume VIII, Issue 595, 9 November 1869, Page 3

OPENING OF THE NEW ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AT MELBOURNE.

The opening of the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Grace Park, Hawthorne, took place recently. The ceremony, which was one that must have possessed much interest for the Roman Catholic body, drew together a large congregation, so large, indeed, that the church though estimated as capable of accommodating a thousand persons, could not hold all who wished to witness 'the'] services, and a considerable number of persons had to remain .outside thebuilding. The portion that; has been erected, includes the nave and side aisles, with a tower carried to the height of !B6f t, and a temporary sanctuary and vestry at the rear. The style is of the " decorated" period of Gothic architecture. Within the wall the dimensions of the building are 114 ft by 50ft in nave, aisles, transept, chancel, lady chapel, and vestry. ; and it , is estimated that accommodation will be found for 1000 persons. The nave, j measures 60ft in length, and the breadth j is 24ft from centre to centre of the columns carrying the upper story arches. The apex of the roof is 51ft 6in from the floor line. The side aisles are 13ft in width. When the design is completed, the tower will be surrounded by : an enriched branch spire, the whole being 170 ft high. The walls are of Brunswick bluestone, relieved with dressings of freestone from Kangaroo Point. The carved work on the freestone has been well done. With the view of having the church ready for the ceremony, some work had to be left undone. For instance, only the windows in the clere-story have been permanently filled in. They are filled in with stained glass having various emblems of the Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, and the Apostles. This is the work of Messrs Ferguson and Uric. The stained glass for the lower windows has yet to be filled in. It will be of a larger and more handsome pattern, and will represent different incidents in the life of Jesus. The passages will be laid with encaustic tiles; for the present tiles of colonial manufacture have been laid down. The columns carrying the upper story arches are of stone from theMalmsbnry quarries, and have been finished in a style supposed to be scarcely attainable with bluestone. As regards the lighting arrangements, there is a bronze coronet round the top of each column, and springing from it are four clusters of three jets each. Mr Dempster executed this work. The whole of the works have been carried out under the supervision of Mr Macartney. A conspicuous object in the church is the altar, which is considered one of the handsomest, if not the handsomest, in the Colony. It is the work of Vermelon, a Belgian artist, who is regarded as the first wood-carver in Belgium, if not in Europe. The altar is constructed of polished oak ; the mouldings are gilt. The height of the altar, including a handsome canopy, ia of 23 feet. We understand that the Rev. E. Nolan, of the Jesuit College, through whose energy for the most part the Roman Catholic of Hawthorn have thus early been provided with so commodious an edifice will conduct public worship in the church.