Cathedral of Brasília
| Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady of Aparecida Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida |
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Cathedral entrance with statues of the four Evangelists
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| Basic information | |
| Location | Brasília, Brazil |
| Geographic coordinates | 15°47′54″S 47°52′32″W / 15.79833°S 47.87556°WCoordinates: 15°47′54″S 47°52′32″W / 15.79833°S 47.87556°W |
| Affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| District | Archdiocese of Brasília |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Cathedral |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) | Oscar Niemeyer |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Architectural style | Modernist |
| Groundbreaking | September 12, 1958 |
| Completed | May 31, 1970 |
The Cathedral of Brasília (Portuguese: Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida, "Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady of Aparecida") is the Roman Catholic cathedral serving Brasília, Brazil, and serves as the seat of the Archdiocese of Brasília. It was designed by Oscar Niemeyer, and was completed and dedicated on May 31, 1970. The cathedral is a hyperboloid structure constructed from 16 concrete columns, weighing 90 tons each.
In the square access to the cathedral, are four 3-meter (9.8 ft) tall bronze sculptures representing the four Evangelists created by sculptor Dante Croce in 1968. A 20-meter (66 ft) tall bell tower containing four large bells donated by Spanish residents of Brazil and cast in Miranda de Ebro also stands outside the cathedral, to the right as visitors face the entrance. At the entrance of the cathedral is a pillar with passages from the life of Mary, mother of Jesus, painted by Athos.
A 12-meter (39 ft) wide, 40-centimeter (16 in) deep reflecting pool surrounds the cathedral roof, helping to cool the cathedral. Visitors pass under this pool when entering the cathedral.
The baptistry is to the left of the entrance, and can be entered either from the cathedral or via a spiral staircase from the entrance plaza. The walls of the oval baptistery are covered in ceramic tiles painted in 1977 by Athos Bulcão. Offices for the Archdiocese of Brasilia were completed in 2007 next to the cathedral. The 3,000-square-metre (32,000 sq ft) building connects directly to the cathedral underground.
Visitors enter into the cathedral through a dark tunnel and emerge into a bright space with a glass roof. The outer roof of the cathedral is composed of sixteen pieces of fiberglass, each 10 meters (33 ft) wide at the base and 30 meters (98 ft) long inserted between the concrete pillars. Under this is suspended a 2,000-square-meter (22,000 sq ft) stained glass work originally created in 1990 by Marianne Peretti, in shades of blue, green, white, and brown.
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