St. Michael's Cathedral, Gothic Revival cathedral in Rikitea, French Polynesia

St. Michael's Cathedral is a neo-Gothic church on the eastern side of Rikitea, Mangareva Island, measuring 48 metres long, 18 metres wide and 21 metres high. Its white facade is flanked by two square towers with louvered arched windows, and a central gable holds a rose window above a columned entrance portico inscribed "ΑΩ" and "DEUS". The walls are coral limestone and coral lime plaster, brought by raft from quarries at Tauna, Tekava and Kouaku.

Father Cyprien Liausu, superior of the Gambier mission, arrived in Rikitea in 1835 and had the cornerstone laid on 17 January 1839; Bishop Étienne Jérôme Rouchouze blessed the site that April. Lay brothers Gilbert Soulié and Fabien Costes directed the masonry with fifteen native workers, and the two towers followed in 1847–48. In 1856 Soulié and sixty Mangareva workers went to Tahiti to build Notre-Dame in Papeete.

The interior showcases local craftsmanship through mother of pearl decorations and an altar adorned with black pearl engravings. These details blend European religious traditions with materials and skills from the region.

The cathedral stands on the eastern side of Rikitea on Mangareva Island, reached by boat or small plane from Tahiti via the Gambier Islands. It is an active parish, so visits fit around Mass and parish events; the building was reopened for worship on 3 December 2011 after refurbishment. Broad steps lead up to the entrance portico.

The inscription above the entrance reads "Quis ut Deus" ("Who is like God"), the Hebrew meaning of the name Michael. The photograph shows only "ΑΩ" and "DEUS" on the gable, so look for the full motto over the dark arched doorway.