The symbolic and work of art in Saigon is located in the downtown of Ho Chi Minh City, Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon. It was designed by the ancient architecture of France with widen opening spaces, both the inside and outside. The cathedral was built right after the French conquest of Saigon. The purpose of building this is, to celebrate religious services for French colonialists. Now, the church is considered as one of the symbols of Saigon. This is also a special religious architecture created with passion that attracts the most visitors in the city. Notre-Dame Cathedral is officially named as the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of The Immaculate Conception.
The church has a very special design, the foundation is able to withstand loads of 10 times compared with the construction above. This sounds interesting. The church was designed with a main space, with the altar in the middle and two sub areas followed by two chapels. The length of the cathedral is 93m, the width is 35 m and the height is 21 m. The capacity of the cathedral can reach 1,200 people.
The interior includes the chancel (main altar) in the middle, two sub-sacred areas, and the chapel range .The chancel is 21m high and it is separated from 2 other sub-sacred areas by rows of pillars. The main as well as sub granite altars were sculpted delicately and skillfully.
On the walls were decorated with 56 colorful glass windows to describe Bible stories as pictorial bible. All the lines, edges, patterns are in accordance with Roman and Gothic sacredly and dignifiedly.
The bell towers are like the soul of the church. Its height is 57.6 meters, which make it the highest bell tower in Vietnam. The two bell towers were hang 6 large bells with six tones: Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Sol-La-Si and ring like the song. The total of the bells weights 28,895kg. Only on Christmas Eve do all the bells ring together, you can even hear the bells from 10km away.
The front of the cathedral is a park with four cross roads forming the cross. The center of the park is the statue of the Our Lady of Peace sculpted by G. Ciocchetti in 1959. The white granite statue with rough sculpture ordered in Rome, Italy. Our Lady standing in the upright position and the eyes looking at heaven as praying for Vietnam and to the world to have peace .. On the stand the words were written in Latin “Our Lay of Peace, Pray for us”. In October 2005, the statue of Our Lady had shed tears, attracting thousands of people to come and see and also pray, but local authorities stopped this movement to avoid traffic jam. However, the Catholic Church in Vietnam didn’t confirm anything about this sign, but Christians believed on this miracle.
Come to Notre Dame Cathedral, visitors are not only to admire a famous art architecture, but to recall a historical evidence of Saigon in the years of the French conquest, and this is also a chance for them to have time for silence, to look back their historical life and the world to ask Our Lady , to give us the true meaning of peace and to the entire world.
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