St. Joseph Cathedral

The Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Joseph is one of the most important historic buildings in Stone Town, Zanzibar, as well as one of the main visitor attractions.

The church is regularly used by the local Catholic community, with several masses held every Sunday and occasionally on weekdays. ^[1]

Location

The church is located in the Baghani area, on the Kenyatta Road. ^[1] Although the twin spires are easy to see from a distance and from elevated places in Stone Town (ie the balconies of House of Wonders), the church itself can be difficult to find in Baghani’s maze of narrow streets. The easiest route to the church is to follow Kenyatta Road to Gizenga Street and then take the first right. ^[2]

History and style

The church was built between 1893 and 1898 by French missionaries. The design of the church was based on that of Marseilles Cathedral,^[3] and in fact the two churches bear some resemblance to each other, Stone Town Cathedral being much smaller. Its main architectural feature is its double spires (like those of the Church of Marseilles) which are one of the easiest elements of the Stone Town skyline to see from elevated sites and from the ocean. ^[3] The interior is painted with scenes from the Old Testament, all destroyed by the poorly done restoration in 2014. The tiles and stained-glass windows were imploded