The Anglican Cathedral's grand chandeliers were lowered this morning for their annual maintenance work.
A team of maintenance workers began work on the cathedral's four chandeliers this morning, Tuesday, March 7 for maintenance and cleaning. The chandeliers, first installed in 1924, have to be lowered once a year to ensure chains are secured and any damaged LED lights are replaced.
Each chandelier, which weighs around 965kg each, has to be lowered by hand. Several of the maintenance team, stationed in the cathedral's roof area, gently lowered the ornate chandeliers to the ground using a winch system.
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Two more of the maintenance team waited on the floor hundreds of feet below to guide the chandeliers onto a metal stand so maintenance work could begin. The operational team told the ECHO the chandeliers would be raised using a drill mechanism later in the day.
The operation, which started at 8.30am and completed around 3.30pm, was closed to the public. Images captured by the ECHO showed the scale of the operation as well as the ornate detail on the metal chandeliers.
The chandeliers, which still have the original chains and cables, were made by leading British glassmaking and metalwork company Osler & Faraday Ltd - a combination of F&C Osler and Faraday & Son Ltd. The metalwork is also displayed in a number of other light fixtures around the cathedral. The company also manufactured a chandelier for St George's Hall several decades before.
The decision to build the Anglican Cathedral was first made in 1901 and two years later a design was submitted by Giles Gilbert Scott. On July 19 1904 the foundation stone was laid by King Edward VII at an open-air service - and in 1910 the first part of the cathedral, the Lady Chapel, was completed.
The building was completed in October 1978 in the presence of the late queen Elizabeth II. It is the largest cathedral and religious building in Britain.
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