Church Of St. Francis Of Assisi, Goa

Church of St Francis of Assisi is a 16th-century Portuguese church located near Se Cathedral in Goa. It is a famous landmark that exhibits an eclectic mix of stunning architecture and intricate carvings. The statue of Mother Mary stands at the front of the church with the tower of the church behind. Adjoining the St Francis of Assisi Church is an archaeological museum.

The structure of the Church and Convent of St Francis of Assisi stands adjacent to the Se Cathedral and is one of the famous monuments of Old Goa. At the highly decorated altar of one of the chapels, is the statue of St. Francis, made out of wood, and the statue of Our Lady of Miracles. Behind the altar, you will find the intricately ornamented wall with floral patterns. Besides this, the illustrated scenes from the Bible on the walls will take you through the Christian version of the journey of mankind.

The architecture of the Church and Convent of St Francis of Assisi gives a Corinthian Baroque touch to this structure, which is built of laterite blocks and is lime-plastered. The west-facing church has a nave with three chapels on either side, two altars in the transept, a choir, and the main altar. On the north of the main altar, there is a belfry and a sacristy. The Archaeological Museum is housed within the convent, which forms an annexure to the church and it preserves items like ivory sculptures of Jesus Crucifixion, portrait paintings of Vasco da Gama as well as artifacts of Vishnu with ten incarnations, Surya and Gajalakshmi.

History

This church along with the convent was established and inaugurated by the famous eight Portuguese Franciscan friars, who reached Goa in the year 1517. Shortly after their arrival, they received legal approval for preaching Christianity in Goa. The friars decided to build a convent closer to the Se’ Cathedral, a famous heritage site. It started as a small chapel in 1521. A few years later, it was converted into a fully functioning church. Later, many modifications were done to the structure in 1661 and the structure remains intact to date.

The convent was initially used as accommodation. However, in 1529, the rooms of this structure were converted into a convent and in 1835, it was ceased by the government of Portuguese. After liberation from Portuguese rule, the convent structure was converted into a museum.

Architecture

The west-facing church has a nave with three chapels on both sides, a choir on the first floor, the main altar, and two other altars. Belfry and a sacristy are on the north of the main altar, today which you see the house of Archaeological Museum was a convent forming annexure to the church.
The exterior of the Church is of the Tuscan order while the main entrance is in Manueline style. The main altar is Baroque with Corinthian features. There are no aisles but only a nave, which is rib-vaulted. The internal buttress walls separate the chapels and support the gallery on top.
The Church interior includes a richly ornamental niche with a tabernacle supported by the Four Evangelists on the main altar. In a niche on the façade stands a statue of our lady of miracles brought from Jaffna in Sri Lanka. Above the tabernacle is two large statues, one is St. Francis of Assisi and the other is the crucified Christ. A wooden statue of St. Francis of Assisi adorns a pedestal bearing the insignia of the Franciscans. A wooden pulpit richly carved with floral designs is to the left as one enters.
The convent contiguous to the Church now houses a museum that was set up by the Archaeological Survey of India in 1964. The museum contains artifacts, paintings, and pieces of Hindu temple sculptures from Goa.