PilgrimstaysThe first thing that strikes you as you stand atop the Monte Santo or Holy Hill, is the commanding view of Old Goa that it affords. According to the local tradition, the Portuguese General Afonso de Albuquerque stood from this very vantage point, the highest in Velha Goa and watched his troops overcome those of the Bijapur Sultan, Ismail Adil Shah in 1510. In thanksgiving the famed naval commander, vowed to build a church on the same spot. The church dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, Goa was built in fulfillment of that vow. Although the vow could not be fulfilled before his death in 1515, work on the church commenced in 1543 and was completed in 1547. Built in the classical Portuguese-Manueline style, the church of Our Lady of Rosary, Goa has elements of the Gothic in its simple yet elegant facade. The vault above the altar and the retable show touches of the Renaissance which was sweeping through Europe at that time. With only one nave and two side altars the church is a modest affair and indeed antiquity is its single largest claim to fame. It is perhaps the oldest chapel in Goa, standing undisturbed in its original stately appearance for nearly five centuries now. Although the church of Our Lady of the Rosary, Goa did undergo renovation in 1897-1899 it remains largely unaltered. It was in the church of Our Lady of Rosary that the revered St Francis Xavier, often taught catechism when it was first built. On the floor in front of the altar is the tombstone of the Portuguese governor Dom Garcia De Sa, who died on the 13th of June 1549. He was married to a woman Catherine Pires, ‘the flower of Miragaia’, whose cenotaph is in an apse set into the northern wall of the chapel. Inscribed in marble is the legend ‘Aqui jaz Dona Catarina, mulher de Garcia de Sá, a qual pede a quem isto ler que peça misericórida a Deus para sua alma’ which translates to ‘Here lies Dona Caterina, wife of Garcia de Sa, who requests the readers of these lines to beg God’s mercy on her soul’. The simplicity of the church is the secret of its beauty. The two towers on the corners of the nave, with the high windows along the sides, give the church the unmistakable appearance of a fortress. Located at a short distance higher up on Monte Santo from the church of St Augustine , it waits to reveal to the visitor why it is a worthy addition to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites. Read more about the Pilgrim Stays Historical Goa itinerary here.
The first thing that strikes you as you stand atop the Monte Santo or Holy Hill, is the commanding view of Old Goa that it affords
The church dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, Goa was built in fulfillment of that vow
Although the vow could not be fulfilled before his death in 1515, work on the church commenced in 1543 and was completed in 1547
Built in the classical Portuguese-Manueline style, the church of Our Lady of Rosary, Goa has elements of the Gothic in its simple yet elegant facade
With only one nave and two side altars the church is a modest affair and indeed antiquity is its single largest claim to fame
The walk up to the church from the main road — through a shaded path in the forested hillside — is itself a quiet transition from the tourist activity below to the serenity of the hilltop. At the top, the view opens across the Mandovi River, the Old Goa plain, the churches below, and the distant hills. This is one of the finest views in Goa.
The Manueline doorway — the carved stone portal in the distinctively Portuguese Late Gothic style, with its twisted columns and maritime motifs — is one of the oldest examples of this style in Asia. It was carved in 1526 and has survived five centuries of monsoon and tropical conditions. For architectural historians it is extraordinary; for pilgrims it is simply a beautiful entrance.
Catarina a Piro was a woman of Malay origin who came to Portuguese Goa, converted to Christianity, and became a figure of significance in early colonial society. Her elaborately decorated marble sarcophagus — Portuguese in style, Indian in craftsmanship — is one of the oldest and most poignant monuments in Goa. She was a woman between worlds, and her tomb is a monument to the complexity of the early Portuguese-Indian encounter.
The interior of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary is relatively simple compared to the baroque elaboration of the Se Cathedral — a whitewashed space with a carved retable and side chapels that has the feeling of great age and continuous prayer. The simplicity is a relief after the grandeur of the other Old Goa churches.
The church grounds offer an unobstructed panorama across the Mandovi River to the forests and hills beyond — the same view that Albuquerque is said to have commanded during the 1510 battle. Standing here in the early morning, with the river glittering below and the church bell (if it rings) breaking the silence, is one of the most genuinely peaceful pilgrimage moments available in Goa.
Catarina a Piro was Malay, Catholic, and a figure of influence in early Portuguese Goa. She died in the 16th century and was buried in the oldest church in Old Goa, in a marble tomb of great elaboration. She had left behind everything that made her, and become something new in a new place. Her tomb sits here on this hilltop above the Mandovi River. No one knows exactly who she was or how she came to be here. But she was buried with ceremony, and she is remembered. That is something.
“Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.”
Read in full on Bible Gateway →The first thing that strikes you as you stand atop the Monte Santo, or Holy Hill, is the commanding view of Old Goa that it affords. According to local tradition, the Portuguese General Afonso de Albuquerque stood from this very vantage point, the highest in Velha Goa, and watched his troops overcome those of the Bijapur Sultan, Ismail Adil Shah, in 1510. In thanksgiving, the famed naval commander vowed to build a church on the same spot.
The church dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, Goa, was built in fulfilment of that vow. Although the vow could not be fulfilled before his death in 1515, work on the church commenced in 1543 and was completed in 1547.
Built in the classical Portuguese-Manueline style, the church of Our Lady of the Rosary has elements of the Gothic in its simple yet elegant facade. The vault above the altar and the retable show touches of the Renaissance, which was sweeping through Europe at that time. With only one nave and two side altars, the church is a modest affair, and indeed antiquity is its single largest claim to fame. It is perhaps the oldest chapel in Goa, standing undisturbed in its original stately appearance for nearly five centuries now. Although it did undergo renovation in 1897–1899, it remains largely unaltered.
It was in the church of Our Lady of the Rosary that the revered St Francis Xavier often taught catechism when it was first built.
On the floor in front of the altar is the tombstone of the Portuguese governor Dom Garcia de Sa, who died on the 13th of June 1549. He was married to a woman, Catherine Pires, ‘the flower of Miragaia’, whose cenotaph is in an apse set into the northern wall of the chapel. Inscribed in marble is the legend ‘Aqui jaz Dona Catarina, mulher de Garcia de Sá, a qual pede a quem isto ler que peça misericórdia a Deus para sua alma’, which translates to ‘Here lies Dona Catarina, wife of Garcia de Sa, who requests the readers of these lines to beg God’s mercy on her soul’.
The simplicity of the church is the secret of its beauty. The two towers on the corners of the nave, with the high windows along the sides, give the church the unmistakable appearance of a fortress. Located at a short distance higher up on Monte Santo from the church of St Augustine, it waits to reveal to the visitor why it is a worthy addition to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites. Read more about the Pilgrim Stays Historical Goa itinerary here.
