Former College Church
Location
Wurundjeri Country
Parkville VIC, Australia
Client
Melbourne Mar Thoma Church
Significance
State Significance
VHR H0394
Completed
2023
Services Provided
Conservation Works, Building Conditions Assessment, Heritage Advice
Awards
2024 AIA Victorian Architecture Awards | Heritage Architecture - Shortlist
Completed in 1898, College Church was the first parish church in the suburb of Parkville. The church, influenced by the English 'Free Decorated Style' originally featured an ornate limestone crown and lantern which was removed in the 1980s to avoid risk of collapse. The tower continued to deteriorate over the subsequent 40 years, until purchased by the Mar Thoma Church in 2008, who engaged RBA to undertake extensive conservation works including the reconstruction of the crown and lantern.
In the early 1980s, the lantern had weathered to such an extent it required dismantling, and a supporting scaffold was installed under the remaining structural buttresses. When the Mar Thoma Church proudly purchased the building in 2008, it was their first ‘own’ church in Australia. The Mar Thoma Church had three linked objectives:
Firstly, to re-state the ongoing Christian use of the building,
Secondly to maximise the impact of their available funds,
Thirdly to provide an aesthetic benefit for the wider community.
As a condition of a permit to construct a small addition, Heritage Victoria required the Church to undertake conservation works. To this end, in 2016 RBA were engaged.
At the time, the appearance of the tower, truncated and with rusting scaffold, was dramatic even from a distance, although on closer inspection the remainder of the building was in relatively good condition. The permit condition required only make-safe works to the tower crown, however by prioritising the defining features of the building – the crown, it’s missing lantern, and the missing crucifix above the main entrance – it was possible to both meet the client's objectives and to exceed the requirements of the heritage permit.
The conservation and reconstruction of the crown and lantern was completed in early 2023, following six years of research, investigation, and documentation. The works included the hand carving and installation of a three metre high decorative limestone lantern, structural measures to comply with contemporary earthquake codes, and traditional conservation of the retained stone.
Image Credits: Peter Bennetts
