'Rome of the West'

We have lived in the St. Louis area since 1965 (except for the 9 years in Texas) and one place we had not visited until June of this year is the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. Since then we have been back twice more with visitors. It is a very beautiful church. When we visited with Pat's brother-in-law, his comment was that he had been in cathedrals around the world and only Saint Peters Basilica in Rome rivals the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis in beauty. Construction of the cathedral began May 1, 1907, with the First Mass on October 18, 1914. The architecture of the exterior is Romanesque with granite walls. What makes the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis stand out is it's collection of mosaic. This is one of the largest mosaic collections in the world and the largest under one roof. There is no paint in the narthex and the sanctuary. The wall and ceiling surface is either marble or mosaic. All the color is provided by the mosaics. The installation of the mosaic, containing 41.5 million pieces covering 83,000 square feet (1.9 acres), began in 1912 and was not completed until 1988.

The Cathedral was designated a basilica by Pope Paul II on April 4, 1997. The designation as a basilica recognizes a church's great history, beauty, liturgy and significance as a center of worship. The presence of a small ombrellino (umbrella) signifies the status of the church as a basilica. The ombrellino is opened when a Pope is present.

The arched narthex is a fine example of Byzantine style of art and architecture. All the mosaic in the narthex are a series of scenes about the life of Saint Louis IX, King of France (1214-1270), patron saint of the city of St. Louis.

The main dome and sanctuary mosaic depicts biblical scenes from both the Old and New Testament. The central dome in the sanctuary is 143 feet from the floor.

Mosaic on the ceiling of one of the halls.

The alter.

The alter dome is supported by massive columns of Italian marble.

There are four small chapels that flank the main sanctuary. Here are some of the mosaic in these chapels.

Even this is mosaic not a painting.

This sculpture is a replica of Michelangelo's Pieta that is on loan to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis . The original is at Saint Peters Basilica in Rome.

Pope Paul II visited the Cathedral on January, 27, 1999.

The church basement contains a museum describing the mosaic process and artifacts of the Cathedral.

Cardinal Vestments on display in the museum.

The alter chair used during the visit of Pope Paul II on display in the museum.

The basement also has burial crypts for former leaders of the Archdioces.

This marker is on the floor of the All Souls Chapel that is above Cardinal Glennon's crypt

The first Catholic Church built in St. Louis was a small log church built in 1770. In 1834 it was replaced by the Cathedral of St. Louis. This Cathedral still stands on the St. Louis riverfront just off the southwest edge of the Gateway Arch grounds. Because of the historical significance of the church, it was left intact while all neighboring buildings were demolished to make way for the Gateway Arch. When the new cathedral was built, the original cathedral became known to the locals as the Old Cathedral . The larger church, the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. continues to serve as the seat of the archbishop of St. Louis. However, to recognize the original cathedral's significance, on January 27, 1961 Pope John XXIII designated it as a basilica, giving it the present name, the Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France.