The cathedral, like most of the great Gothic cathedrals of Europe, is built of solid masonry, including all the walls, pillars and the twin towers. The granite stones were transported from Kowloon, Hong Kong by sailing ships. For this reason, it is nicknamed "Stone House" (Shi Shi) by local people. "Stone House" is pronounced "Shishi" in Mandarin and "Seksat" in Cantonese, hence the name "Shishi Cathedral" in Mandarin or "Seksat Cathedral" in Cantonese.

The Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus also known as Sacred Heart Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Guangzhou (Canton), South China. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Guangzhou (Canton).

Since its completion in 1888, the cathedral has seen three large renovations. The first one was in 1925, when then Bishop Antoine-Pierre-Jean Fourquet, M.E.P. replaced the timber roof, beams and steel staircases with concrete ones. After the Cultural Revolution, the government spent ¥150,000 for a second renovation in 1984 and 1986. The third one was initiated in 2004 and finished in the autumn of 2006. The church paid ¥3 million and local catholics donated about ¥2 million for the ¥26 million project, while the rest was covered by the government. The aim of the renovation was to solve the problem of leakage by rebuilding the whole roof and all the beams. Most of 19th century stained glass was damaged during wartime and smashed in the Cultural Revolution, so new stained glass was made by a Philippine company specialising in church glass and reinstated. Therefore the new stained glass carries English texts rather than Latin and French texts which were on the original French glass. New lighting, audio and CCTV systems were also installed. The original French mechanical clock has long gone, so a new 750,000-yuan clock fit for the clock tower was made by a Chinese clock factory.

Though often misunderstood by the public and media as being modelled on the Notre Dame de Paris and sometimes being referred to as "Notre Dame in the Far East", the cathedral was actually inspired by the Basilica of St. Clotilde in Paris. It features a nave of approximate 27 metres high, flanked by two lower aisles, and 14 small side-chapels. With a floor area of 2,754 square metres, it is the largest Roman Catholic church in the Guangzhou archdiocese and the largest cathedral in the Gothic style in China and Southeast Asia. The cathedral is 35 metres wide, 78.69 metres long, and the twin towers rise 58.5 metres high. The west tower is a clock tower while the east tower serves as bell tower, inside which there are five gigantic bronze bells shipped in from France in the 19th century.

The adress of Sacred Heart Cathedral of Guangzhou:

The cathedral is located at 56 Yide Lu (or Yat Tak Road), Guangzhou.

广州市一德路旧部前56号