The Chapel

In the late sixties Justus Jörgensen found out about a little bluestone church close to the Trades Hall was to be demolished. Jörgensen went to his friends the Whelan’s, of ‘Whelan the Wrecker’, who had the contract and persuaded them to let him have the bluestone. The rebuilt chapel at Montsalvat bears no resemblance to the original except for the use of the bluestones.

The chapel is a prime example of passion for free recycled material. The parquetry floor is of Johnson River hardwood and originally came from the bullion room at the Reserve Bank. The altar was purchased at auction from Loyola College; Jörgensen painted the three little altar paintings in the tryptic, the year before he died. The harmonium (organ) came from the Mason’s lodge in Ivanhoe and the small altar in the sacristy from a convent in Port Melbourne. The pews from a Uniting Church in Fitzroy. Under the corbels there are four sculptures by Sonia Skipper. Standing at the entrance of the chapel under the first corbel to the left is Mervyn Skipper, the next on the left closest to the altar are Arthur Munday and Matcham Skipper. On the right closest to the altar are Sonia Skipper and Helen Lempriere and under the right-hand corbel closest to the door is Justus Jörgensen.

Matcham Skipper made and installed the stained-glass windows with the help of Myra Skipper and Matcham’s apprentice. The cartwheel seen through the plain glass window is not quite at the centre of the apex of the building, someone made a mistake with the abacus; however, this has not made a difference to the charm and delight of the building. The chapel has not been consecrated as the catholic archbishop of the time didn’t like the ‘bohemian lifestyle’ of Montsalvat residents!

Memorial to Myra Skipper

An uncut quartz memorial stone to Myra Skipper is adjacent to the Bluestone Chapel. Myra Skipper, nee Gould, born in 1920, was a painter and jeweller (wife of Matcham Skipper). She died in 1994 and her ashes are buried under the stone. Matcham Skipper died in 2011 and his ashes have been added to the stone. Myra and Matcham had three children, Adam, Damien and Marcus.

Carved Limestone Head

The limestone head near Myra Skipper’s memorial is where Tim Benson’s ashes were deposited (Tim was Matcham Skipper’s apprentice).

The Cheese Room and THE Drop Toilet

The small round construction at the end of the Cheese Room was originally a drop toilet before the days of mains water and septic tanks. Today, internally the space opens into a modern cool room store which was originally designed to be a specialist cheese cool room. Cheese maker Richard Thomas, who lived at Montsalvat for a time, had been involved with founding cheese making at King Island Dairy, Meredith Cheese and also the Yarra Valley Cheese.

Bell Tower of the Gallery of the Great Hall

Above the roof line of the Great Hall is the bell tower that is a classic example of the Spanish influence Jörgensen gained from his European trip between 1924 and 1928. One of the differences being that in Spain the towers are often the nesting places for storks – none in Montsalvat at the moment.

The Bluestone Tower

The Bluestone Tower also known as Ric’s Tower was constructed circa 1956 of square cut and random bluestone with a steeply pitched slate roof topped with a cast iron finial. The building was started eighteen years after the cluster of buildings it abuts – the Great Hall and Jörgensen’s Studio.   

Jörgensen’s vision of this tower perhaps harks back to his time in France when he spent a period in the little village of Verzelay (L’lle su Serain). The building contributes to the Medieval quality and vibrant roof line with its many angles and varying heights which adds to the charm and distinctive quality of the architecture. Jörgensen liked to join buildings together with towers; from one spot behind the Great Hall a visitor can see five towers.