Kericho, with a population of about 150,000, is located 250 km from the Kenyan capital Nairobi. Around it are wooded hills and tea plantations. The diocese arose here relatively recently, in 1995, but the active Bishop Emmanuel Ocombe managed to find funds (an unknown philanthropist fully paid for all the work, the final cost of the project was not disclosed) for the construction of the second largest church in the country.
Cathedral of the Sacred Heart has a total area of 2800 m2 and accommodates 1500 believers at once. In shape, the building resembles a paper airplane, but the central nave of the temple is 1375 m22 does not narrow, but, on the contrary, expands and rises, paying all attention to the altar part. On the sides, almost along the entire length of the main nave, there are many exits that unexpectedly unite the interior of the temple with the outside world.
The slopes of the tiled roof have become a natural, but clearly visible part of the urban landscape. The terracotta plates, made and laid by local craftsmen, form an intricate pattern that symbolizes the vine: it was invented by the artist John Clark. The entire structure of the cathedral is based on 10 concrete ribs, the details of which were cast on the spot. Their rhythm is supported by massive wooden beams and thin slats, breaking through which the upper sunlight acquires the necessary sacred meaning.
The architects did not envisage any sophisticated technologies and engineering systems, however, the building can be classified as sustainable construction: the side entrances contribute to good natural ventilation, and the maximum use of natural light and the associated very low energy consumption allowed to achieve the minimum cost of building the building. In addition, local materials were widely used in the construction and Kenyan firms were involved, and even workers were trained.
Cypress was chosen for wooden details (such trees grow nearby), soapstone for statues in the side galleries was brought from a neighboring town, granite for the altar part was also mined in Kenya, and the so-called Nairobi Blue stone was chosen for the floor and plinth. stone, in the first case, machine processing was applied, and in the second - manual processing). Only glass and stained-glass windows were brought from Germany: their author is also John Clark, but they were installed by local craftsmen.
