Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Chanthaburi


The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is a Catholic church and is located in the city of Chanthaburi, in the province of the same name, in Thailand.

Description

The cathedral, visible from most of the city, was formally inaugurated in 1909 as one of the largest Catholic churches in Thailand. It was built on a previous structure of more than 300 years. It was constructed in Gothic style during the 10 years of occupation by France on this territory although it remained unfinished at that time. There is a statue of the Virgin Mary in front of the Cathedral.
The centre piece of the inside of the cathedral is the statue of the Virgin Mary. It is covered by semi precious gems donated by the local congregation – estimates of the number of gems range from 200,000 to 500,000.
It serves as the Roman or Latin rite seat of the Diocese of Chanthaburi which was created in 1965 with the Bull "Qui in fastigio" of Pope Paul VI. It is under the pastoral responsibility of the Bishop Silvio Siripong Charatsri.