Memorial Cathedral for World Peace (2)

Gate to the Cathedral

Here’s the gate to the Memorial Cathedral for World Peace; next comes the approach; then a small bridge beneath which there once was water. The competition guidelines for architects submitting their design included such prerequisites that the cathedral be modern, religious, monumental, and pay respect to things Japanese. Architect MURANO was asked to design the cathedral, though he was on the board of jurors, after the competition committee couldn’t select an architect who should be in charge. He had to struggle how to incorporate something Japanese in the whole concept for the cathedral. This layout, reminiscent of that of Japanese shrines, seems to be one of his answers among others.

Facade of the cathedral

The facade of the cathedral is adorned by the sculpture depicting the seven sacraments. It was conceived of by architect IMAI Kenji, one of the competition jurors for the cathedral and MURANO's friend; prototypes were made by architect TAKEISHI Kozaburo; ENTSUBA Katsuzo, helped by SAKAGAMI, made the sculpture on site in 1956. This radiates a feel of Japanese Buddhist temples.

Asian phoenix on the dome

Here's a picture of the Memorial Cathedral for World Peace with its dome scarcely shown. Pay attention to the Ho-oh, or Asian phoenix, perched on the dome due to architect MURANO's idea. The original plan was to erect a cross.

Stairs to Heaven

Architect IMAI Kenji named these stairs Stairs to Heaven. Fathers at the church also called the stairs that way. Two sets of stairs were made on the west and the east side of the tower. IMAI commented that these stairs made the heavy weight of the tower look light and airy.

Cornerstone

Go through the gate, walk the approach, cross the bridge, proceed to the door to the cathedral, turn left, walk a few steps, and look downward at the wall on the right. This is what you'll see: the cornerstone of the cathedral.

A ceremony to celebrate the construction of the cathedral was held on July 23, 1950. This cornerstone was made at that time and later laid in the place mentioned above.

Interestingly, the inscription on the stone goes "Memorial Cathedral for World Peace" though the church publicly referred to the future cathedral as Peace Memorial Cathedral of Hiroshima in those days. In fact this appellation was used until the very end of the construction.

The practical construction started on November 8, 1950. And the cornerstone was laid in the facade of the cathedral to be.

The church announced on July 23, 1954 that Memorial Cathedral for World Peace was adopted as its official name, just before the completion ceremony on August 6, 1954.

World Peace, it seemed, was always a key word for the cathedral.