St Mary's Cathedral, Perth

St Mary's Cathedral, Perth
The completed cathedral after repairs and expansion, pictured in July 2010
31°57′20″S 115°51′59″E / 31.9556°S 115.8665°E / -31.9556; 115.8665
Address	Perth, Western Australia
Country	Australia
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Website	perthcatholic.org.au
History
Status	Cathedral[1]
Founded	18 February 1863 (1863-02-18)
Founder(s)	Bishop of Perth Rosendo Salvado
Dedication	Mary, mother of Jesus
Consecrated	29 January 1865 (Stage 1) 12 August 1973 (Stage 2) 9 December 2009 (Stage 3)
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Michael Cavanagh (Stage 2) Peter M. Quinn (Stage 3)
Architectural type	Cathedral
Style	Academic Gothic
Years built	1863 – 1910 (Stage 1) 1926 – 1973 (Stage 2) 2006 – 2009 (Stage 3)
Completed	December 2009 (2009-12)
Administration
Archdiocese	Perth
Clergy
Archbishop	Timothy Costelloe
Western Australia Heritage Register
Official name	St Mary's Roman Catholic Cathedral
Type	State Registered Place
Designated	10 October 1995
Reference no.	2124

St Mary's Cathedral, Perth, officially the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Perth and seat of its archbishop, currently Timothy Costelloe.

The cathedral is at the centre of Victoria Square, on the northern end of Victoria Avenue, Perth, Western Australia.

The cathedral as it now stands was constructed in three main phases, with the first phase completed in 1865. Plans were drawn up for the replacement of the cathedral in the 1920s with a larger Perpendicular Gothic edifice. However, construction was interrupted by the onset of the Great Depression, leaving a new transept and sanctuary, with the aisle of the original cathedral as its nave. After being incomplete for 70 years, with portions of the cathedral requiring extensive repair work, funds were eventually raised in the late 1990s and early 2000s for the completion of the expansion. A new curved design for the expansion was created, and featured a second spire and underground parish centre. The cathedral closed for construction in 2006, and reopened in December 2009.