Architect Irwin.. Catholic church, Pachmarhi, MP,,twitter.com |
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Henry Irwin's Anglican church at Pachmarhi, MP. upload.wikimedia.org |
Located in a quiet and serene environment in Pachmarhi this Anglican church was built in the 19th century during the colonial period to cater to the spiritual needs of a small community of Christian living in this part of Madhya Pradesh.. The Church. is in the restricted cantonment area (since colonial time) and only on Sundays for a few hours it is open to public for services and prayer.
Catholic church, Pachmarhi, MP. interior.trippertravels.com |
stained glass windows, Catholic church, Pachmarhi, MP. wikipedia commons org. |
The church obviously has old world charm Features like stained-color class works depicting episodes from Christ's life. archaic windows, neo-Gothic altar and unique high ceiling add more charm to the old-world aesthetics. The picturesque location in the midst of greenery is an ideal place to go into meditation or prayer to get rid of stress and worries.; you will be free from the very mundane existence.
Location map. Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh..traveltriangle.com |
The architect of this church at Pachmarhi, a famous hill station (elevation 3501 feet), was the famous Irish Architect 'Henry Irwin'. It was his debut in the Indian subcontinent in the area of colonial type of architecture . He completed the church in 1872. When he was the Executive Engineer in Nagpur (1872), he was entrusted with the design work and it was built in accordance with the guidelines laid out for ecclesiastical buildings in the UK in the 19th century. That point of time they did not like onion domes and pointed arches but even the "heathen" implications of the neo-classical or Graeco-Roman monuments. A movement called the Gothic Revival was taking shape to redefine High Church or Anglo-Catholic self-belief, shedding assault on traditional Christian values. Irwin's design was very much appreciated and his initial work won him laurels. . He received many honors including his appointment as Consulting Architect to the Madras Government in 1888.
Catholic church, Pachmarhi, MP destinationsindia.com |
This old church receives visitors on the week ends. Though the the façade of the building may look faded and a bit damaged but the interior portions are in good shape as they have been in the last 145 plus years. In spite of its age the church is proud to have aesthetically sound interiors
There is a small cemetery adjacent to the church and here there are tombs of those who were killed in the WWI and WWII.
https://www.thrillophilia.com/attractions/pachmarhi-catholic-church
https://www.triphobo.com/places/pachmarhi-india/pachmarhi-catholic-church
https://victorianweb.org/art/architecture/irwin/das/1.html