Gasil Cathedral, Chilgok

Gasil Cathedral, Chilgok, is the oldest Catholic cathedral in North Gyeongsang Province. It began when Father Camillo Paiaseu (Korean name Ha Gyeong-jo), who arrived as the first parish priest in 1895, used a five-bay tiled house as the parish church. The site was chosen close to a landing on the Nakdonggang River so that Catholicism could be spread inland by waterway. As the congregation grew and the original church became too small, Father Tureunoe (Korean name Yeo Dong-seon), the parish priest at the time, built a new cathedral on the present site in 1923. The design was undertaken by Father Victor Louis Poisnel (Korean name Park Do-haeng), who also designed Myeongdong Cathedral and other churches. Gasil Cathedral is a Neo-Romanesque building with one basement level and one storey above ground, with a bell tower at the centre of its façade. Inside, it has a three-aisled plan, with a central nave flanked by aisles on either side, and a barrel-vaulted ceiling built on a wooden frame finished with plaster. The former rectory standing behind the cathedral was built at the same time; centred on its entrance hall, it contains a catechism room, a storeroom, an office and a bedroom, with a wine cellar in the basement. During the Korean War, both South and North Korean forces used Gasil Cathedral as a field hospital, so that it escaped damage even amid the fierce fighting of the Battle of Nakdonggang. It was known as 'Naksan Cathedral' from 1958, before being renamed 'Gasil Cathedral' again from 2005.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Chilgok, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산