Dublin Core
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One of two photographs of the former Chalmers Presbyterian Church in Launceston. The church was built in Gothic Revival style in 1859 (the first service was in January 1860) and was designed by architect William Henry Clayton (1823-1877). It was named after Thomas Chalmers, the founder of the Free Church movement in Scotland following the 1843 Great Disruption of the Church of Scotland. His followers were known as Free Kirkers. The church became a Presbyterian church in 1896 and was deconsecrated in 1981 and it can now be hired as a hall. This photograph shows face masks around the bell tower. Despite the flamboyantly Gothic style of the tower, the masks may be inspired by similar ones from the Classical period, and are quite different from the gargoyles which one would expect to find on a Gothic church.
For more on the Presbyterian Church in Tasmania see http://www.utas.edu.au/library/companion_to_tasmanian_history/P/Presbyterian.htm