Description of the attraction
Cebu Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Cebu, located in the capital of the province of the same name. The construction of the cathedral began in 1689 and lasted for many years due to interruptions caused by lack of funding and other unforeseen circumstances. Once the money allocated for the construction of the cathedral was spent on fighting the Moro pirates. Another time, the construction of the cathedral was interrupted due to the death of the bishop who was in charge of the construction. In 1786, only the facade was ready, and the consecration of the cathedral took place in 1940 - 250 years after the start of construction.
The architecture of the Cathedral is typical of the churches of the Spanish colonial period - a squat structure with strong walls that can withstand typhoons and other natural disasters. On the façade, you can see a trefoil pediment decorated with carved floral motifs, the inscription "Jesus Christ" and a pair of griffins. Above the main entrance is the Spanish royal coat of arms, symbolizing the contribution of the Spanish monarchy to the construction of the cathedral.
During the Second World War, most of the cathedral was destroyed as a result of the bombing of the city by the Allied troops, the century-old archives of the bishopric were forever lost. Only the bell tower, built in 1835, the facade and walls have survived. The rest of the church was rebuilt in the 1950s. In 1982, at the initiative of Archbishop Julio Rosales, a mausoleum was built near the sacristy, in which the remains of the bishops and clerics of Cebu are now buried. In 2009, large-scale restoration work was carried out in the cathedral, and a request was sent to the Vatican to give the cathedral the status of a "minor basilica" in honor of the Christian great martyr St. Vitaly. The day of worship of this saint coincides with the day when the image of the Infant Jesus was found in Cebu 450 years ago.
