Brasília Cathedral
The Brasília Cathedral ( Portuguese : Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida ) is a Catholic church building in the Brazilian capital, Brasília .
The name Aparecida stands for the appeared or for Our Love appeared woman (= Maria ) and refers to Aparecida , the largest pilgrimage site in Brazil.
history
The cathedral was planned and executed by the architect Oscar Niemeyer in connection with the new building in the Brazilian capital . Construction began in 1958 and was consecrated on May 31, 1970.
architecture
The Brasília Cathedral is made of concrete and glass and is characterized by its hyperbolic shape, which is created by 16 concrete columns of the same type. The building is circular and has a diameter of 70 meters. The cathedral can seat 4,000 people.
The cathedral is half sunk in the earth and is one of the few structures in Brasília that is not in the shape of a cube . The interior is largely empty, with an egg-shaped sculpture above the concrete cubes of the altar, symbolizing the origin of life. Three angels float right in the center of the dome. In the walls of the crypt there are gavetas , drawers, into which the coffins of the future bishops are to be pushed after their death.
The symbolism of the building is ambiguous. The structure is interpreted as either Christ's crown of thorns , a flower, praying hands or Mary's crown.
The four larger than life sculptures in front of the cathedral represent the four evangelists .
Acoustic phenomenon
The cathedral offers a special acoustic phenomenon. The sound is transmitted along the circular concrete base so well that a conversation at normal room volume is possible over a distance of approx. 25 meters.
literature
- Wolf Dorner, Eka Donner: Brasília Space Station. Memories of a city of the future . Pro Business, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-937343-91-1
Web links
- ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Brasilia Cathedral - Brazil.org )
Coordinates: 15 ° 47 ′ 54 ″ S , 47 ° 52 ′ 32 ″ W.