Revival of interest was partly due to the Church Act of 1836 which provided NSW Colonial Government subsidies for new church construction. In this case, and finances for a dean was provided. The cathedral was the most prominent of the eight churches commenced under this scheme and the major church building designed by Hume. It was also the first attempt in the colony to produce accurate details from medieval sources. The Conrad Martens lithograph influenced much of the church design that followed. Work on the building again ceased in 1842 due to the combined effects of drought and economic depression in the colony.