www.monumentaustralia.org.au

Edmund BlacketPrint Page Print this page

23-September-2015
23-September-2015

Photographs supplied by Peter F Williams
A marble plaque, located in the church grounds in front of a marble baptismal font, commemorates the architect of the cathedral, Edmund Blacket. The Greek Orthodox Cathedral was formerly St Paul's Anglican Church.

Edmund Thomas Blacket (1817 – 1883) was an Australian architect, best known for his designs for the University of Sydney, St. Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney and St. Saviour's Cathedral Goulburn. 

In 1847, Bishop William Broughton - Australia's first (and only) bishop awarded the commission for the construction of the church at Redfern to Edmund Blacket, the diocesan architect for the Church of England in Australia. 

Blacket had a particular interest in the gothic style of architecture and designed St Paul's Church in the Decorated Gothic form. During the colonial period, architecture was commissioned by the British settlers and was often designed to reflect the buildings of their homelands. The ecclesiastical building models were symbolic of Christianity and Blacket, in keeping with other colonial architects of the time, took inspiration from the design of established churches in England. The elevations and dimensions for St Pauls Church were taken from a lithograph of St Barnabas' at Homerton - designed by Arthur Ashpitel. 

While famous for his churches, and sometimes referred to as of "The Wren of Sydney", Blacket also built houses, ranging from small cottages to multi-storey terraces and large mansions; government buildings; bridges; and business premises of all sorts. Blacket's architectural practice was highly influential in the development of Australian architecture.


 

Location

Address:242 Cleveland Street, Greek Orthodox Cathedral , Redfern, 2016
State:NSW
Area:AUS
GPS Coordinates:Lat: -33.888827
Long: 151.202361
Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.
View Google Map

Details

Monument Type:Plaque
Monument Theme:People
Sub-Theme:Architecture
Link:http://adb.anu.edu.au/

Dedication

Front Inscription

In memory of Edmund Thomas Blacket.

Architect of this Church

Born 1817. Died 1883.

Source: HNSW, ADB, MA
Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au