Goa Attracations

Basilica of Bom Jesus

The Basilica of Bom Jesus is a minor basilica, located in Old Goa, India. It is one of the Seven Wonders of Portuguese Origin in the World and is part of the architectural complex of churches and convents of Goa, a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, one of the best examples of Baroque architecture in the country.

It was built between 1594 and 1605, work considered fast by the standards of the time. Inside lies the body of St. Francis Xavier, regarded as the Apostle of the East.

The construction work started in 1594 by order of the Captain of Cochin and Hormuz, Dom Jeronimo Mascarenhas, and the church was consecrated on May 15th 1605, by the Archbishop of Goa Dom Frei Aleixo de Meneses. On December 2nd 1637, the body of St. Francis Xavier was transferred to the Basilica, where it remains today. In 1946, he became the first basilica in India. Nowadays, there are pilgrimages to the site, to visit the tomb of The Apostle of the East.

The Baroque style building, is considered one of the best examples of style in India. Built in laterite, the floor is marble and inlaid with precious stones. There are several paintings depicting the life of St. Francis Xavier, and the altar is dedicated to St. Ignatius of Loyola, companion of St. Francis Xavier in the missions in the East.

Its design was inspired by the Church of St. Paul of Macau, now a ruin. The columns are a set of the features Ionic, Doric and Corinthian. The ground floor has three portals, above them are three long windows and on the second floor are three circular windows.

Most of the upper facade forms a quadrilateral carved from basalt to form a medallion depicting the emblem of the Society of Jesus. There is a Mausoleum (where now rests the body of St. Francis Xavier) built in 1696 for Cosmo III, Grand Duke of Tuscany, a member of the Medici family. This was a project by the sculptor Giovanni Battista Foggini. The tomb is made of silver. His relics, for security reasons, are presented only once every 10 years, and the last presentation was in 2004.