St. Paul's Cathedral, Kolkata

St. Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral of the Church of North India - a united church which is part of the Anglican Communion - in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the seat of the Diocese of Calcutta, and the incumbent bishop is the Rt. Revd. Ashoke Biswas.

The building itself stands on the "island of attractions" in Kolkata - beside the Victoria Memorial, Nandan, Rabindra Sadan theatre complex, and the Birla Planetarium.

Construction

The building was initiated by Bishop Daniel Wilson in 1839 and was completed in 1847, in Gothic Revival style with stained glass windows and two frescoes in Florentine Renaissance style. A military engineer, Major William Nairn Forbes, designed the cathedral with the assistance of C.K. Robinson, modelling the tower and spire upon the Norwich Cathedral. The tower was rebuilt along the lines of Bell Harry Tower in Canterbury Cathedral following the 1934 Calcutta earthquake. The Bishop's House across the street is also architecturally notable. St. Paul’s was consecrated in 1874.

Architecture

The cathedral conforms to the Neo-Gothic or the Gothic Revival style of architecture that was greatly patronized by the British during the days of the colonial era. The main cathedral hall is large, with beautifully carved wooden pews and chairs along with the stained...
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