If you’re searching for unique monuments, you can find one of the most peculiar churches in the world and certainly the most unusual Serbian church on the other side of Earth. Quite literally. Not only is it situated in a desert in Australia but it’s also hidden underground. We’re talking about the Serbian Orthodox Church in Coober Pedy, Australia.

In an outback mining town of Coober Pedy, about 800 kilometers north from Adelaide, in the state of South Australia, there is the church of the Prophet Elijah.

An unorthodox Orthodox church

The church of Saint Elijah the Prophet is a Serbian Orthodox church built in 1993 by Serbs who settled in Coober Pedy as opal miners. These resourceful people managed to build a 30 metres long, 5.3 metres wide, and 7 metres high place of worship for themselves.The floor of the church is an astonishing 17 metres below ground level in the deepest point, and 3 metres below it at the shallowest point.

Serbian Underground Church Coober Pedy
Photo: Anuja Manchanayake

The whole church complex encompases not only a church but a community hall, a parish house and a religious school. And what’s even more fascinating, everything, the whole church, is carved in the sandstone.

But the size of this underground Serbian church and depth at which it’s located, are not all that make this place utterly amazing. Namely, the ceiling window is covered with stained glass and  the iconostasis is made of glass behind which lights shine giving the a truly divine atmosphere.

Serbian Underground Church Australia
Photo: BRJ Inc

This church also has unique frescoes. They’re not painted on rocks, they are cut into them. And as if the stained glass windows and the intricate rock-wall carving weren’t enough, there are ornately carved statues of saints.

Serbian Underground Church Coober Pedy
Photo: Colesafsky

Apart from being an more than obvious example of remarkable architecture, craftsmanship and human ingenuity, this Serbian church has gained world fame because of its unusual location – it’s in the middle of a desert and it’s underground.

Why build a church underground?

As we’ve already mentioned, the church of Saint Elijah was built by Serbian Australians who settled in this outback South Australian town as opal miners. The miners were digging for opal, a semi-precious stone, dug up something much more than that. They dug up one of the most beautiful gems not only of Serbian Orthodoxy but of Christianity overall.

Serbian Underground Church Coober Pedy
Photo: Alan and Flora Botting

Still, the question remains – why did they build a church underground?

Well, the reason is pretty obvious if you think about it. They were in a desert area where temperatures reached well above 40 degrees Celsius. And they needed a place to find religious solace. Combine the two and you get an ingenious solution and a most amazing result – a completely underground Cathedral.

 

Features photo: Bart de Grood

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AustraliaChurchCoober PedyOrthodoxSerbianUndergorund

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