Christ Church, Zanzibar

The monument to the slaves next to the cathedral

The Anglican cathedral Christ Church (or Church of Christ) is a landmark historical church in Stone Town, Zanzibar,^[1] as well as one of the most prominent examples of early Christian architecture in East Africa.^[2] It was built in ten years, starting from 1873, based on a vision of Edward Steere, third Anglican bishop of Zanzibar, who actively contributed to the design. As most buildings in Stone Town, it is made mostly of coral stone. It has a unique concrete roof shaped in an unusual barrel vault (that was Steere's idea) and the overall structure mixes perpendicular gothic and islamic details.^[3] The cathedral was consecrated in 1903 and named after the Canterbury Cathedral.^[3]

The church is located in Mkunazini Road, in the centre of the old town, and occupies a large area where the biggest slave market of Zanzibar used to be; the construction of the cathedral was in fact intended to celebrate the end of slavery.^[3] The altar is said to be in the exact place where the main "whipping post" of the market used to be. In the square there is a well-known monument to the slaves (a few human figures in chains emerging from a pit) as well as a museum on slavery.^[1]

Edward Steere died of a heart attack when the cathedral was almost completed, and was buried behind the altar. Inside the church there is a cross that was made from the wood of the tree that grows on the place where David Livingstone's heart was buried, in Chitambo.www.saintmonicastours.com.

As many other historical coral-stone buildings in Stone Town, the Cathedral experiences decay and structural problems and needs restoring.^[3]

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b} The Anglican Cathedral Church of Christ
2. ^ Zanzibar Christians
3. ^ ^{a b c d} The Cathedral