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Christian Contribution to Art and Architecture in India PROF. MENACHERY PAPERS AND ARTICLES [DRAFTS]
Draft
of Article in CBCI KCBC Apostle St. Thomas St. Francis
Xavier Jubilee Documentary Committee [Chaired by
by Bishop Thattungal] Volume, "CHRISTIAN
CONTRIBUTION TO NATION-BUILDING" POC
2004 Ed. PONNUMUTHAN, AERATH AND MENACHERY 01.01
Intercultural nature of all art: What
art and architecture is purely indigenous? There is no art or
architecture - no sociocultural formations of any significance, anywhere
in the world - relating to a nation, a region, a religious or racial or
linguistic group - that is fully local or indigenous. The art and
architecture of India - secular or religious -
is no exception. Thus Church Art and Architecture of India from
the commencement of the Christian presence on these coasts at the dawn
of the Christian era have been to a greater or lesser degree influenced
by those of other nations and religions as they in turn have been
influenced by Indias wealth of artistic and architectural traditions.
All the nations and cultures that came into contact with India - the
Egyptians, the Phoenicians, the Greeks, the Romans, the Moguls, the
Parthians, the Iranians, the Arabs (of Pagan, Jewish, Christian, and
Islamic persuasions), and the Europeans of a later date including the
Portuguese, the Dutch, the Danes, the French, and the English have all
left their mark on the society and culture of India, as has also been
done by the eastern countries and cultures. 01.02
Aspects of art here studied: The
topic "Christian Contribution to Art and Architecture in
India" is indeed vast
and complicated,
as most other topics in this
volume are. In addition to the necessity of discussing the
chronological, geographical, and denominational aspects, the styles,
varieties, types, and schools as well as the genres, localities, media,
approximate dates, materials used, purposes and uses,
to name but a few details, of each object, and each group of
objects, of art and architecture have to be considered. 01.03
Chronological divisions of Christian Culture: Take
for example the chronological divisions. The history of Christianity in India and
hence of Christian culture may be said to roughly fall into certain
epochs or into various periods: e.g. a) the first few centuries Indian
and Persian influence, b) the Padroado period,
follwed by c) the Protestant centuries,
and the d) the Propaganda period, e) periods and pockets
influenced by personnel from different regions of Europe and America,
and, f) the post independence period. The nomenclature employed to
describe these periods does not necessarily signify that all the trends
appearing in each time-span were
only specific to the source/s
indicated by the epochs
designation. In general we may treat the story of chrstian art and
architecture in India by dividing it into 1) the Pre-European period, 2)
the 16th to 18th Century
developments, and finally 3) the modern period.
01.04
Regions: Among
the geographical divisions with special reference to Christian art and
architecture must be studied Malabar i.e. Kerala, the Konkan belt and
the areas under predominant Portuguese influence even upto Mumbai and
Vasai along with Portuguese pockets elsewhere, locations associated with
the Mogul court, Bengal, the French pockets, and the Carnatic with
special reference to the Tamil country, and many other areas of
Anglo-American influence. 01.05
Genres: Again,
consider the genres. While performing arts like song, music and dance,
and literary arts like poetry, or the drama or rhetoric do not come
under the purview of this article, many genres of fine arts like
architecture, sculpture, painting must be discussed. So also objects
utilizing or made out of different media or materials
like stone (granite, laterite, marble, sandstone), wood, metal
and metal alloys (gold, silver, iron, bronze, brass), pigments (wooden
panels, murals, frescos, canvasses, cloth paintings, colouring of
statues and other wooden objects), ivory, bone, glass, precious stones,
shell, plaster, straw, nutshells, leaves, bricks, mud, clay, concrete,
...all claim our attention. 01.06
Items of artistic and architectural significance: There
are a large number of items
of artistic and architectural significance
in the religious and domestic / civil life of Indian Christians which
come under one or more of the divisions and categories adumbrated above.
F.i., in the churches there are ever so many types of roofs, ceilings,
facades, porticos, verandahs, naves, chancels, altars, altarpieces,
statues, candlesticks, pillars, doors, doorways, architraves, pulpits,
crosses, cross pedestals, chalices, censers, censer-boats, bells,
belfries, books, book-illustrations, and bookmarks, bibles and bible
stands, choirs, tabernacles, monstrances, railings, wall paintings,
wooden panels, cloth paintings, vestments, beams, rafters, processional
umbrellas, canopies, chariots,... and a thousand and one other objects
to be considered. And there is a plethora of household utensils and
features of domestic and civil architecture to be considered. 01.07
A viable scheme of study: Of
course it would be next to impossible to at least cursorily deal with
even a fraction of all
this. Hence it may be more practical to make an attempt to discuss the
main instances and trends in the chief centres of Christian art and
architecture then and now, such as (1) Kerala upto the 17th century, (2)
the Mogul court, (3) the Goan circle and pockets of Portuguese
influence, (4) other regions, (5) some notable architectural landmarks,
(6) some remarkable works of art, (7) the 20th century. However in an
article of this size even
these topics could not be discussed in any detail. 02.01
Kerala Upto the 17th Century: The
location of the state of Kerala on the western seaboard, at the centre
of the international
highway of seaborne trade connecting the East and the West, [and the
North with the South] made it a meeting point of many worlds, a melting
pot of races and creeds, from early times.1 The Hindu monarchs and
chieftains of the Sangam and post-Sangam period ruled over a fertile
agricultural tract the peace and safety of which were guaranteed by the
Western Ghats on the one side and the Arabian Sea on the other. The land
itself was [for long] a secret shared between the sea and the mountain,
an illegitimate child of the two natural forces, protected by and
provided for by them in a special way.2 But already we find in the first
centuries B.C.E. / C.E. that while the monsoon route connected Muziris (Cranganore)
directly across the Arabian Sea with cities in the west (e.g.
Alexandria, Aden) the West Coastal route gave its ships ready access to
the Indus3 and to countries to the North and Northwest in Asia and
Europe.4 02.02
Foreign influences: It
would appear that the impact of her trans-Arabian-sea visitors were much
more pronounced in the case of Kerala than that of her mainland
neighbours, during and
after the Sangam age. This contact with the countries west has
paved the way for considerable influence of the societies and cultures
of those lands and their peoples on every phase and aspect of the life
of the inhabitants of Kerala. Thus from the arrival of Vasco da Gama in
1498, Portugal, the Netherlands, France, and England have had a great
deal of influence on the people of Kerala not only in the matter of
material cicumstances of life but also in the field of ideas and
ideologies. One of the strongest
areas where this influence is manifested is in the field of Kerala art
and architecture in general and Christian art and architecture of Kerala
in particular. 02.03
Pre - European period: Christian
art and architecture in Kerala in the pre-European periods had developed
obtaining nourishment from two sources: one, from the countries in the
near-east including perhaps Greece, Rome, Egypt and the other Middle
East countries from which ideas and practices were imported by
missionaries and traders, and two, the indigenous forms and techniques
of art and architecture that existed in the land. 02.04
Nature of Keralas cultural heritage: By
a happy mingling of these two streams already by the arrival of the west
in Kerala there was existing here a strong tradition of Christian art
and architecture which was notable for its aesthetic as well as
pragmatic excellence. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the French and the
English and also the missionaries from Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium
&c. brought with them their own art traditions which resulted in
adding certain features to the already existing structures and
traditions without trying to or succeeding in totally replacing the
cultural heritage of the Christians. Hence today one can see a
harmonious blending of the East and the West in the Christian art and
architecture of Kerala although examples are not altogether lacking of
attempts made to implant certain incongruous elements into Kerala's
cultural formations. 02.05
Two-fold approach: Hence
to understand and estimate the quality and quantity of Kerala Christian art and architecture it may be best first to
analyse the nature of such art and architecture at the coming of the
Portuguese in 1498 and thereafter to study the items introduced by
various western administrators and missionaries, along with their
varieties and spread. 02.06
Two pictures: Two
pictures are available about the churches and churchbuilding activities
of the Christians of Kerala at the beginning and end of the sixteenth
century. At one end we have the account given by Joseph the Indian and
the letter written by the four bishops in 1504.5 At the other end of the
century we have the documents of the Synod of Diamper in Malayalam as
found in many old Kerala churches6, in Portuguese in the work of
Gouvea7, and in English in the work of Geddes8. 02.07
Similarity of Hindu and Christian places of worship: The
tale of how Vasco da Gama went into a Hindu temple in Kerala and mistook
it for a church and venerated the idol of Bhagavathi (?) mistaking it
for an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary would have clearly illustrated
the similarity of the Houses of God in Hinduism and Christianity in
Kerala had we any assurance that Gama already knew about the shape of
Devalayas in the land from his many spies and scouts. 02.08
State of affairs at the beginning of the 16th century: The
description of the reception given to the bishops at the beginning of
the 16th century by the faithful sheds considerable light on the state
of the churches, the Christians and their cultural and artistic
traditions: ...they were received by the faithful with great joy and
they went to meet them with joy, carrying before them the book of the
Gospel, the cross, censers, and torches...9. And they, the bishops
consecrated altars...10. 02.09
At the end of the 16th century: In
the Synod of Diamper, 1599, there were represented more than a hundred
churches of the St. Thomas Christians. This indicates the existence of a
very large number of churches already at the coming of the western
powers to India. The description of the visits of Archbishop Dom Menezes
to various churches before and after the Synod throws some light on the
structures and arrangements of the churches before western elements and
types were introduced into Malabar.11 It may be remembered that the
churches and all their belongings were
the property of the parishioners and each church was built completely
from the parish revenues and subscriptions from the local faithful. A
student selected from the parish and educated by the parish was the
vicar in each parish. It was only after the Synod that westernisation of
institutions and structures commenced / gained momentum. The bishops
started to have any say whatsoever in the affairs of the parishes only
much later, and even today in most Nazraney Churches the parish retains
a great deal of autonomy. Hence
as has already been remarked to understand and estimate the
quality and quantity of
Kerala Christian art and architecture it may be best first to analyse
the nature of such art and architecture at the coming of the Portuguese
in 1498 and thereafter to study the items introduced by various western
administrators and missionaries, along with their varieties and spread. 03.01
The three objects in front of the Kerala church: There
were three striking objects of significance in front of the typical
Malabar churches, either inside the courtyard or just outside it: (1)
the open-air granite (rock) cross which the present writer has
christened Nazraney Sthamba, (2) Kodimaram (Dwajasthamba) or Flag-staff
made of Keralas famed teak wood (e.g. at Parur), and often enclosed in
copper hoses or paras (as at Changanassery, Pulinkunnu, or Chambakkulam),
or made out of some other wood or other material, and (3) the rock
Deepasthamba or lampstand. Sthambas or pillars of some type or other are
to be found among the Budhists, Jains, Hindus, etc. in India.Such
pillars and structures were part of the Christian heritage of Kerala
much before the ascendancy of Vedic
Hinduism in these parts , although J.Ferguson does not appear to
have known or cared for the rock monumental Sthambas of Kerala .12 03.02
Open air granite crosses: The
ubiquitous cross of Malabar churches is best represented by the rock
crosses, mostly outside the churches. The open-air rock-cross of Malabar
is an obelisk, a tall stone column, with four, sometimes decorated,
slightly tapering sides. Rome has many obelisks (from Egypt and East,
but no originally cross-bearing structures decorating the piazzas and
squares); London has one on the banks of the Thames lovingly called
Cleopatras Needle; Paris has one at the place d la concorde; and
even New York has one in the central park. Many memorials like the
WashingtonMemorial are obelisk-shaped. The Asoka Pillar and other such
Indian pillars were influenced by the Graeco-Parthians, under
Egyptian-Persian influence. The Nazraney sthamba is a direct descendant
of the obelisk, and much closer to it than the other Indian pillars- in
shape, method of constuction and transportaion, method of erection,
function, and solar symbolism. The Roman obelisk, bearing crosses today,
have been converted to Christianity, while Keralas cross-shaped obelisks
were born Christian13. The obelus and the double -dagger reference marks
in printing may be profitably recalled here. Such obelisk crosses
continued to be erected mostly in front of churches even after western
ascendancy without much change although a few changes in the motifs on
the pedestals etc. could be noticed.14 03.03
The three-tier gabled indigenous architecture of Kerala churches, which
lacked facades until the coming of the Portuguese, immensely gains in
richness, symmetry, and beauty because of the open-air rockcrosses, some
of them more than 30 feet in height including the intricately carved
pedestals, and monolithic shafts. No other community in Kerala has such
a huge monumental stone structure. The indoor counterparts of these
crosses have the earliest carvings in Kerala of the national flower
lotus and the national bird peacock. Perhaps even the national animal
tiger is first depicted in Kerala art in church sculpture. There was
perhaps no rock carving in
South India prior to the period of these indoor crosses. The motifs,
message, and images on these crosses and their pedestals display a
remarkable degree of Indianness and Malayalee Thanima or identity. Vedic
Hindu Gods and Goddessess like Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, Sapthamathas,
Jeshta etc. appear in the art of the central Guruvayoor/Palayoor-Quilon
part of Chera country only after the 9th-13th centuries, and even in the
Salem-Erode section, and the Trivandrum-Cape Comorin section Vedic Hindu
deities appear in art only as late as the 9th century A.D.15 03.04
The base with a socket, the monolithic square and slightly tapering
shaft with cylindrical terminals, the horizontal piece forming the arms
with a double (hole) socket in the middle, and the capital with a
cylindrical bottom end are the four members of the open-air cross. They
are so well chiselled and proportionate that when put together the
socket and cylinder arrangement enables the cross to stand by itself.
However for the bigger crosses, pedestals in the form of sacrificial
altars or Ballikallus are found, often carrying exquisite reliefs of the
flora and fauna of the land in addition to scenes from daily life and
biblical scenes. The cross which represents the supreme Bali (sacrifice) or Mahabali appearing
on the Balikkallu or sacrificial altar most appropriately represents the
Calvary events and sheds plenty of light
on the ideological, historical, cultural and technological bent of mind
of the forefathers.Compare with the base of the Obelisk of Theodosius,
Constantinople,.A.D.390. 03.05
The obelisk is a ray of the sun - here a ray of Christ (of Horus -Xt.
the sun-God). This ray helps the lotus near - universally depicted on
such crosses to blossom forth
representing in a typical Indian poetic conceit the grace received by
the sin - bound human soul (panka jam) from Christ. Lotus representing
the sun is found in other early Indian art also.The half dozen interior
Pehlavi inscribed crosses, some of them surely of pre- 7th century
origin, which were mostly tombstones before they were put up on the
altars, have generally the dove (Holy Spirit) depicted on top of the
clover or flowertipped equal-armed Greek cross, in addition to the lotus
at the bottom. In this three piece (Thri-kanda) cross one might,
perhaps, with considerable effort read the lotus represented Brahma
(Father), the flowery cross (Son), and the dove (Holy Ghost). But the
lotus has more universal and more diverse implications in the various
eastern creeds. 03.06
The arrangement to hold wicks found on the crosses may be related to the
necessity to preserve fire, and the effort to make it available to the
common people in the dim past, when Homakundams were rare in Kerala or
beyond the reach of the common folk. It is perhaps in connection with
the need to preserve fire that the oil-Nerchas and oil Araas
or chambers of the churches, and the compound -wall rocklamps are
to be evaluated. The oil related objects in the churches also indicate
the connection of this Christianity with the trade of the land,
especially oil-trade. The bell like arrangement on some crosses also are
noteworthy. Veneration of the cross, angels, Adam and Eve... and of
course the Indian Cross itself are some of the religious carvings on
these structures. 03.07
Deepasthambas and Deepams: The square or polygonal shape of the
individual pieces in the granite or rock lampstands at Kallooppara,
Niranam, Kundra, and Chengannur churches indicate the antiquity
of such lampstands in the churches. Unlike in the churches, in the
temples the tradition of these lamps continued and thus developed in to
the present-day round shape of the pieces. In art history generally the
simpler forms make their appearance first, and refinements and
complications indicate a later date. Even when the tradition of
lampstands declined in the churches, many open-air crosses had
wickholders incorporated into them, with the advantage that wind and
rain did not put off the flames. Church walls still display rows of rock
lamps. Inside the
churches the tradition of bronze lamps continued vigorously,
representing a variety of shapes and types, and some lamps having even
hundreds of wickholders, e.g. the Aayiram Aalila lamps at Arthat or
Angamaly. 03.07
In front of the church the third interesting object is the flagstaff,
sometimes covered with copper paras. Every festival is announced with
the Kodiyettu or flag-hoisting, a tradition going back to early Buddhist
times at least. All these three objects in the courtyard of the church
have a variety of liturgical functions associated with them. 03.08
Baptismal Fonts: Crossing the portico or mukhamandapam
one enters the Haikala or nave beyond the huge doorway with
intricately carved doorpanels called Aanavathils. Either in the nave or in the little room
set aside as baptistry one comes across the rock baptismal font. There
are interesting rock baptismal fonts at Edappally, Kanjoor, Mylakkombu,
Muthalakkodam, Changanassery, Kothamangalam, Kadamattom etc. The
similarity of these baptismal fonts with illustrations of the fonts used
for the baptism of Constantine (4thC.) and Clovis (Rheims C.496) is
remarkable. All the old
baptismal fonts are of granite or very hard laterite. They are all huge
in size indicating that baptism by immersion must have been the order of
the day. Many of the dozens of old baptismal fonts depicted in the
STCEI15 & the ICHC16 were probably of a date prior to the decree of
the Synod of Diamper which made permanent fonts more or less compulsory.
Although most of the old baptismal fonts/ baptistries are found near the
west end or middle of the nave on the northern side - Kaduthuruthy(Big),
old Edappally, old Kanjoor, Changanassery (Southern side), in many
churches, mostly Jacobite/Orthodox
they are today found close to the sanctuary e.g. Angamaly
(Middle-church), Kallooppara.. They are exquisitely carved with reliefs
of the baptism of Christ, Mary feeding the Child, angels, or Indian
crosses. There are also wonderful motifs of leaves, the basket pattern,
coir pattern, etc. engraved on these stones. By the way the very
Malayalam word Mammodisakkallu indicates a font made of stone. Another
term is mammodisath-thotti. The Holy Water Font is called Annavella Th.-thotti,
also generally of stone. The Architraves and doorposts in many churches
are good examples of south Indian rock-carving. (e.g.old Kayamkulam,
Chengannur, Kanjoor). But the rock-baptismal fonts are the real pride of
many an old church.16 03.09
Another aspect of church architecture that has scarcely been
affected by the later types from abroad is the old three tier gabled
wooden roofing with the highest roof for the Madhbaha or Sanctum
Sanctorum and the lowest for the Mukhamandapam or portico with the nave
or Hykala having a roof of middle height. Although the rock crosses, the
flagstaffs, the rock lampstands, the baptismal fonts, and the three
tiered roofing pattern have not been much affected by the western
visitors and administrators many of the objects found inside the
churches and the very appearance of the inside have undergone many
changes after the arrival of the Portuguese and other westerners. Let us
look at some of these changes. 04.01
There is an interesting description of Kerala churches in the account of
Joseph the Indian, c.1500. The Christians have their churches, which are
not different from ours, but inside only a cross will be seen. They have
no statues of the saints. The churches are vaulted like ours. On the
foundation is seen a big cross just as in our place. [May be the open
air cross?] They have not any bells. 17 There is much truth in the
statement of George Varghese: But once these churches came under the
jurisdiction of the Portuguese in the sixteenth century, the ornate
monumentality of the European churches was introduced into the small
temple-like Syrian Christian churches, which even did not have windows
in the early past. Thebaroque and ornate altars with statues and
foliages replaced the Chaldeo-Syrian altars, which were in fact only
stone-tables with nothing more than candles, Chalice and the Holy Book
on them, the bare necessities for observing the Holy Mass. Despite
unpleasant frictions with the Portuguese, both in political and
ecclesiastical matters, this was the golden era of
Church Art in Kerala. They introduced the Romano-Portuguese
style, which was assimilated
with such artistic and structural finesse by the artists of Kerala, so
that it created some of the finest pieces of artistry in the Nazraney
school. Later, the British
also were equally enthusiastic in introducing their skills and forms
into the Church Art of Kerala. Hence, from a conservative perspective,
the art in these churches may appear eclectic, with diverse traditions,
both western and eastern, superimposed one over the other. The
exclusively Asiatic symbols like stone lamps, flag masts, stone-crosses,
arched entrances etc., untouched by the foreign hands, co-exist with the
Renaissance frescoes, and the Baroque Art of Europe in the same
church-complex. There is, in fact, an underlying unity behind this
apparently confused juxtaposition of images, symbols and monuments; this
is due to the fact that as universal archetypes, images and symbols of
religions, both in the west and in the east, have many common
elements.18 04.02
Among the additions which took place in Kerala churches with the advent
of Europeans might be counted paintings and sculptures on a large scale,
imposing altarpieces or reredos; rostra or pulpits, statues of all
sizes, types and shapes; plaster mouldings and pictures; huge bells and
belfries. Murals and frescoes on a very large scale make their
appearance as well as paintings on wood panels and clothe. But the most
apparent introduction of the Portuguese was the facades they put up
between the portico and the nave in order to impart a Christian
appearance to the churches.19 04.03
The mural tradition of Kerala is ably represented in the churches of
Kerala. Many pictures depicted on the walls of Kerala churches may be
older than the well known Mughal and Rajput paintings.20 Some
interesting murals, all of which use only pigments extracted directly
from natural objects like leaves, laterite stone, &c., are to be
seen in the churches at Angamaly, Akapparambu, Paliekkara, and Cheppad.
Silparatna esp. its Chitralakshana division , the Sudhalepavidhana etc.
deal in detail with the colours and additional materials and their
application in Indian mural painting. It is interesting to note that the
early paintings and iconography of Kerala churches strictly adhere to
the concepts of Indian sages and craftsmen on these matters. Interesting
old-time wooden panels are seen at Piravaom, Kottayam, Changanassery and
Ollur churches. The vast interior of the Ollur church has thousands of
square feet covered with frescos. 04.04
Today we have a few churches and places of worship in Kerala
which adhere more or less to one or other of the classical christian
architectural styles like the Basilican, Romanesque, Byzantine, Gothic,
Baroque, Rococco, etc. but more often than not the churches built in the
twentieth century are combinations of various styles, both eastern and
western. Elements of Saracenic, Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist origin are
also common. And there are a large number of churches which are like any
other place of assembly such as a Cinema-house, an international
conference centre, or a town-hall, or Kalyana Mandapam. 04.05
Kerala churches built, restored, or reconstructed after the 16th century
have many features in common with such structures elsewhere in India,
esp. in Goa and environs, and
as such are not treated
separately. 05.01
Portuguese Influence and the Goan Circle: After the arrival of
Vasco da Gama and more especially after the commencement of Portuguese
ascendancy in India two distinct patterns of Christian art developed,
one within the areas of Portuguese influence, mostly along the coasts of
the peninsula, and the other at the Mogul (Mughal) Court in the North. 05.02
Twelve
years after the arrival of da Gama at Calicut in Kerala Alphonso de
Albuquerque brought Goa under Portuguese rule in 1510. Thirtytwo years
later Francis Xavier arrived in Goa in 1542. Christian communities began
to grow up in Goa. In the words of Mathew Lederle, S. J. :21 It was a
characteristic of the Lusitanian period that the newly gained Christian
Faith found expression in feasts, customs, songs, dances. In Goa grew up
what has become up to now the only complete form of Christian art in
India, comprising both the sacred and the profane, encompassing the
whole of human life. We speak of the Indo-Portuguese Baroque. This
phrase is not to be taken in too literal a meaning. Though being
predominantly Baroque, it was not restricted to Baroque nor to
Portuguese. Almost any form of European religious art of the 16th to
18th centuries and cultural traditions of various countries left their
traces in Goa. The Portuguese were great builders and promoted
architecture more than any other form of fine art. The Christian
art of Goa reached its climax in church building. [For some
illustrations cf. Thomas Encyclopaedia,Vol.1.] These churches were
elaborately decorated; they expressed the Baroque ideal of making
visible here on earth the
heavenly darbar, centred round the Eucharistic presence of Christ among
his people. The
composite Indo-Portuguese culture which developed in Goa [and elsewhere
in India] over more than 450 years of Portuguese presence in this
locality of Indias West Coast, is a fascinating but vast subject..with...the
shapes which European Baroque, with the Christian art and architecture
which came with it, took in the hands of the Indian artisans and
craftsmen who had their own repertoire of skills, styles and motifs,
developed through millennia of building and carving - the unique,
locally developed style of the Hindu temple and its companion
lamp-tower...22 05.03
Cochin continued to be the Portuguese capital in India until 1530.
Western style forts, houses, churches with their spires, and monasteries
began to be built in Cochin and Goa. Fort Manuel at Cochin was enlarged
and the Mattanchery Palace, now called the Dutch Palace was constructed
and gifted to the Maharajah of Cochin for
the favours granted. In Cochin even today can be seen many of the
churches and convents the Portuguse built - such as the St. Francis
church, the first European place of worship in India perhaps, where
Vasco da Gama was first buried, although the church itself
became afterwards a Dutch church and later an English church and
finally came to be under the Church of South India. It is a protected
monument today under the Archaeological Survey of India as is also the
so-called Dutch Palace not very far from it.
In this locality can also be seen the Santa Cruz Cathedral, the
palace of the Bishop of Cochin, the St. Bartholomew church, the
Dominican church and the St. Pauls church. 05.04
Already by 1542 Francis Xavier writes that Goa is a city entirely of
Christians, something worth seeing. There is a monastery of friars,...
he continues, and a noble cathedral with many canons, and many other
churches. City planning and building activity continued apace so much so
by the end of the 16th century Goa is compared to Lisbon and is termed
the Rome of the East. And Francois Pyrard has this to say: The buildings
of the churches and palaces, both public and private, are very sumptuous
and magnificent. The Se Cathedral begun in the middle of the 16th
century, some years after the completion of the first church of St.
Catherine of Alexandria, and the church of Our Lady of the Rosary are
examples of the earliest large-scale building activity in Goa. The
latter brings to mind the contemporary need for a church to be also a
fort at the same time.
05.05
The ecclesiastical furniture of that time was artistically formed altar
pieces, pulpits, statues, sepulchres, tombstones, chairs, tables,
confessionals. Special attention was given to the sacristies, their
ceilings, their walls, their almirahs. [See the illustrations in Vol.II
(1973) and I (1982) of the Thomas Encyclopaedia.] Even now a large
number of excellent statues both in churches and in homes are still
available, done in wood or in ivory, the delight of the tourist and the
souvenir collector. These statues betray their European artistic
inspiration, but they also show the hand of the local artisans. Some
figures have local face expressions. In a large stucco representation in
the Margao church, the Virgin in standing on a peacock which may have
been influenced by the presentation of Parvati standing on a peacock.
Goa had a developed art of painting, first done by Europeans, then taken
up by local craftsmen. Often the paintings were on wood, as it was
difficult to get a good canvas. Murals too are to be found, as also work
in precious metals. The most outstanding piece of craftsmanship done in
Goa is the reliquary of St.Francis Xavier executed in Goa in 1936-37.
Embroidery too, was encouraged. The Indian contribution to Goan art is
more in the decorations than in the church structures, which on the
whole, kept the forms of their European origins.Though the employment of
Hindu artisans to produce objects of Christian worship was forbidden by
ecclesiastical and secular authorities, both Christian and non-Christian
artists were employed even by religious orders.23 The new
Euro-impressed, Indian Baroque made its first appearance in Kerala,
where Catholic churches came up on the Indian temple plan [Kerala
architectural plan], giving full scope to the native wood-worker to show
on a wider scale than he was accustomed to , his carving skills while
sculpting church-ordained motifs and themes. These skills were to meet,
in a dazzling display of gold painted wood carving, the challenges of
crafting ceilings, outsized altars, retables and pulpits in numerous
churches in Goa and other Portuguese territories on the West Coast.24
05.06
The tower of the Augustinian monastery, the Jesuit hospital, the Bom
Jesus Basilica cloisters and the shrine of the saint, the church of St.
Peter, the Santa Monica, Rachol, Pilar are only some of the edifices
which must be studied for their architectural features and artistic
treasures. And many other
churches and public buildings in the various divisions of Goa still
proclaim the glory of Golden Goa as sung by Luis de Camoens in his
celebrated epic Os Lusiadas.25 05.07
The Hellenistic inspired Gandhara school of art and the
Indo-Persian creations of the Mughal period have been claimed as Indian
art. The European-Christian inspired art of Goa, too, has to get its
place among the various forms of Indian art.26 It
is remarkable that Goan art reached its highest development during the
17th century, a period of political
decline, and of a growing Hindu dominance of Goan economy. The Christian
art of Goa was carried on not by political patronage but by the devotion
of the people. (For this section cf.E.R.Hambye, S.J., Christian Art in
Goa-Some Reflections, Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bombay,
XIL-XIIL,1966-67, New Series, pp.194-202).27 06.01The
Mogul Court and Christian Art 28: The Christian art in Goa grew up
within a Christian community reflecting the socio-cultural mood of this
community. Something quite different developed in Northern India at the
court of Akbar(1556-1605). The Mohammedan empire in the North was
different from the various smaller political powers in the South of
India. Akbar, open to other religions, invited Jesuit priests to his
court. They aimed at gaining influence at the highest cultural and
intellectual level. Jesuits stayed at the court from
1550-83,1591,1595-1603. They could even continue their stay when
Aurangzeb ascended the throne in 1658. As
there were no large Christian communities in the North there was no need
for big churches. The Jesuits made good use of paintings, and especially
engravings which were more easily available and transportable. These
gifts were appreciated for their artistic
qualities and for their religious contents. For example they presented
to Akbar a copy of Plantins Polyglot Bible printed in 1569-72 for Philip
II of Spain, illustrated with engravings by Flemish artists of the
school of Quentin Matsys. Akbar
ordered his court painters to copy the new art. They copied, adapted and
in some cases created new pictures, a happy blending of Christian
content and local forms. Throughout the period there was interest in and
preference for religious themes. This continued even when secular
pictures reached India through officials of the East India Company and
the Dutch embassy. Religious pictures in India at that time referred
mainly to mythology or they showed human beings who were not divine. The
Gospel scenes appealed as they showed the divine through human forms.
They were religious paintings with historical motives. The Jesuit
mission at Agra succeeded not only using art as a very effective
missionary medium, but also in founding a new school of painting. This
was profoundly influenced by Western techniques and was in a way of
Christian art, yet it was also free enough and copious enough
to be a genuine and almost a major element in the art-life of its time
and place.(J.F.Butler, op.cit., p.66) At present, upto one hundred
Christian pictures of the Mughal period are still in existence. Besides
paintings, ivory and wood work, statues and panels with Christian themes
were produced at that time. Along
with the general decline in creativity during the period preceding
British rule in India, Indian Christian
art also lost its impetus. Of the works of the later period some have
their origin in Pondicherry, Vishakapatnam and other centres of French influence.
Some
Sources for Christian Art in the Mogul Court: Space
does not permit the present writer
to go deeper. However
exhaustive information on this phase of Christian art in India can be
obtained from the Sir Edward Maclagan, The Jesuits and the Great Moguls,
London 1932. The chapters
dealing with the first, second, and third missions to Akbar (II, III,
IV), and the fifth chapter dealing
with Jahangir, must be
read. But more especially chapter
XIII entitled Culture and Language (pp. 190 - 202) and chapter XV, The
Missions and Mogul Painting (pp. 222 - 267). The works by Fr. Hosten
also has a great fund of information on the present topic. Attention
of the reader is invited to these illustrations in Maclagans book: The
first Jesuit mission arguing before Akbar (Narsingh); The Good Shepherd
(Maskin); S. Matthew (Kesho); The court of Jehangir, including a Jesuit
priest; Shah Jahan and a courtier,
with Christian symbols (Bichitr); S. Cecilia (Nini); The inn at
Bethlehem; An Indian artist drawing the Madonna (Kesho); and Figures
from Durer. The
interest shown by Akbar and
Jehangir in the missionaries and the western paintings
was not unmixed. For
example see this passage in Jahangir and the Jesuits, London, 1930:
While he (Jahangir) prized the sacred pictures which the Fathers
gave him, not, as they fondly imagined, out of veneration for the
subjects represented, but because he had a passion for works of art and
curios of all kinds, and especially for pictures, of which he was not
only an enthusiastic collector, but a very competent judge.
Indian
Christian Art in Modern Times: When the third period of Christian
influence in India
began, its missionary method was pioneered by William Carey in Bengal,
stress was laid on literature (the Bible) and education. The fine arts
were neglected; compared with the previous period there was less
interest in music, drama, feasts and festivals.Church buildings showed
often the influence of the country of origin of the respective
missionary society. Still, as regards painting there have been more
creative attempts during this modern period than ever before. We find
two types of paintings: those done by non-Christians and those done by
Christians. This corresponds to two efforts at understanding Christ in
relation to Indian traditions. Non-Christian painters expressed their
search and insights in relation to the person of Christ, Christian
Painters interpreted Christ through the means of Indian traditions.
Christian painting in India, and especially its modern period is
excellently treated by R.W.Taylor, Jesus in Indian Paintings, Madras,
CLS, 1975. Contributions
of Non-Christians to Indian Christian Art28: Members
of the modern renaissance movement in India showed great interest in
Christ, especially during the early religion based period, above all in
the Brahmo Samaja movement of Bengal, and then again in the Gandhian
movement. The first modern school of art in India, the Bengal School of
Art centred in Shantiniketan, was through the Tagore family closely
linked with the Brahmo Samaja movement. Also Gandhijis influence was
felt at Shantiniketan. C.F.Andrews lived there for some time. Nandalal
Bose studied under Abindranath Tagore and exercised great influence in
the Bengal School. Of the Christian painters Angaelo da Fonseca and
Vinayak S. Masoji studied under both of them. One of the recurring
themes of Nandalal Boses Christian paintings is the cross.
Representations of Christ on the cross and his passion, his love of the
humble and the low, along with the representation of the incarnation
(Christ and his mother Mary) will for many an artist be the medium
through which they express their own ideals and struggle, their
experiences and insights.Jamini Roy, for several years chose Christ as a
main theme for his paintings. He did not belong to the Bengal School,
but drew his inspiration from Bengal folk art of Western Europe.
K.C.S.Paniker carried on the spirit of India in a modern form. Intense
in his colours and expressive in his form he was often drawn to
Christian themes. R.W.Taylor sees in his Christian paintings a
pronounced social dimension and a tendency largely towards the events of
the passion.(R.W.Taylor, op.cit., p.78). It was also Paniker who said,
and this shows one of the reasons why he was attracted to paint Christ,
If you scratch Christ there is the carpenters son, something
authentic.(Taylor, ibid, p.73). P.V.Janakiram specialised in wash and
tempera techniques and later in sculpture and reliefs. Christian themes
are recurring in his works. The most often portrayed theme is the cross,
followed by the theme of the Virgin and the Child. Christian themes with
these artists share their place of predominance with many other themes
and there are many artists who never painted any explicitly Christian
subject, yet the number of those who did is astonishingly great. Christian
Artists in Modern Times30:
During
recent times several Christian artists
have come forward to express their Christian Faith through the medium
and form of Indian art. The comprehensiveness and openness with which
this is done is something new. The newness is in this that the artist,
not always consciously perhaps, regards the traditional and contemporary
forms of Indian art as his own also. He is not an intruder into
something not related to him. Still he has to do a pioneering job.
Christian paintings now in use in homes
and churches are to a large extend western and often than not of
an inferior quality. The artist can in a visible way express the ideal
of the integration of the Christian community in the country. He can
also contribute towards activating an Indian orientation of the
Christian communities. The people using religious art in India are not
always attuned to modern trends in painting. Indian Christian works of
art are more accepted if they are linked up with one of the periods of
the past: Ajantha, Mughal, Neo-Bengali. Experience shows that the
artists themselves undergo a change. We can recognise the development of
an even greater individuality, a more personal note as the years go
by.This requires that the individual artist finds encouragement,
enlightened sympathetic criticism - and also patronage. Art can only
progress if the artists can also live from their art. The purchase of
original works for homes and institutions is a very realistic way of
promoting art. The
Christian artist in India is confronted by a number of difficulties. The
popular, widely accepted bazaar art shows that many are satisfied with
cheap, artistically inferior works of art, as their artistic taste
remains underdeveloped. It is a widely spread opinion that
representations related to a historic religion have to show the
religious events and persons in a historically true setting, in
something like a photographic presentation. But with the exclusion,
perhaps, of the shroud of Turin, we have no historically correct
representation of Christ. Besides the art of painting is different from
the photographic art. An artist expresses in colour and form what he
feels, how he understands. He does this through the media which are
congenial to him, the media from his own culture. In Western modern art,
Christ is portrayed in many ways; he is seen as the leader of masses,
the redeemer, the man of sorrow, the bringer of peace besides all the
various other forms Christian Faith or the inspiration of his person
suggests. He is depicted in realism, impressionism, expressionism,
cubism and many other trends of painting. An Indian artist will look at
Christ through Indian eyes and this will give his discovery meaning,
form and beauty. In
the Bible, for example, in the childhood narrations of Christ, passages
are expressed as midrash. Midrash means research.The sacred writer
searched the old scriptures for passages which would interpretatively
depict a present reality. That the child was brought to the temple 490
days after the angels announcement to Zachariah depicts the 490 years
mentioned by Daniel and supposedly required till the coming of the
Messiah. The child brought to the temple is therefore the Messiah.
Should one not speak of a cultural midrash also? Searching in the
treasures of a given tradition, modern and ancient, the artist takes the
language of this tradition to explain his own insights. As there are
many traditions in India the Christian artists in India may speak in
many ways of the one reality of his Faith. (e.g.
the cross) or at least neutral symbols (e.g.flame, flower, gesture of
offering), they are reluctant to accept symbols with a typical Hindu
cannotation (e.g.the word OM). Art India, Pune a publishing centre for
Indian Christian art, prints pictures with various symbols, the same
amount at the same time. It is possible, therefore, to determine the
likes and dislikes of the buyers.It has to be kept in mind that most
symbols, in the course of centuries, have been given various meanings.
Let us take the symbol of the peepal tree. Ancient Indian tradition
represents the cosmos in the form of a giant, inverted tree. This tree,
a peepal tree, buried its roots in the sky and spreads
its branches over the whole earth. It represents creation as a
descending order. There have been interpretations which were pantheistic
and therefore not acceptable to Christians. There were also other
interpretations fully agreeable with Christian ideas. This gives the
symbol a certain ambivalence. A Christian can see in the inverted peepal
tree a representation of creation in a descending order. This can point
to Christ, as He, through Him and for Him all things were created,
appeared as man and Saviour. The peepal tree reminds then of the first
creation and of the new creation brought about by the coming of Christ.
(In this sense the peepal tree has been used for a Christmas card by
Sr.Veera Pereira.) Symbols
become part of a culture; they stay even when philosophies change; they
are then reinterpreted.This holds good also as regards basic concepts,
e.g. karma,maya,etc. Symbols may even have been given tantric
interpretations with erotic meanings, even shocking erotic meanings. But
this does not mean that these symbols are necessarily connected with
such meanings. If a symbol is reinterpreted, it is done in the hope that
the new meaning can hold its ground, does not lead to syncretism, and
strikes a new cord in the depths of ones soul.
The
number of Christian artists who struggled to present their Faith through
the medium of Indian culture is considerable. One of the great pioneers
is Angelo de Fonseca, a Catholic of Goan origin who grew up in Pune and
studied under Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose. When he left
Shantiniketan, Abanindranath gave him the commission, Now go out and
paint churches. It was only towards the end of his life (he died in
1968) that the general climate had changed in favour of Indian art. He
worked for many years in the inspiring atmosphere of the Anglican
Khrista Prem Seva Ashram, Pune. His more than 500 paintings show how he
grew in his work, how he left the early Bengal School influence and
developed his own style- mainly,harmonious,impressive,with its clear lines
and the preference for earthen coloured shades. A.da fonsca freely
shared his wide experience when an altar had to be erected, an
ecclesiastical vestment designed, a church built, and vessels to be
used. He pointed our how much, genuinely good, was available in the
small shops of the cities and in the bazaars. Alfred
D.Thomas, an Anglican, from Uttar Pradesh, depicted Christs life and
ministry. His Christ had the ideal male body of classical Indian
sculptures,with broad shoulders and narrow waist. His Christ was soft
but not feminine. His women had the fully flowered female forms of the
classical tradition. Vinayak
S.Masoji, born 1897, at Kolhapur, a member of the United Church of
Northern India, studied at Shantiniketan, and became the Director of its
Kalabhavan. He painted, modelled, worked with leather, wood and
in Batik. He wanted to express a message that India could understand. In
the Mughal style of painting he found a method suitable to tell stories, in his case to
retell biblical events in an Indian setting. A biography is now being
prepared and published by friends. Angela
Trinidade, comes from a distinguished artist family of Bombay. She
painted Christs life in the Ajantha style, a wide step away from the
Western techniques of her father, often called the Rembrandt of the
East. Later she changed and painted in triangular
forms. She explains this to be the result of a religious experience she
had. Now she wants to express everything in this triangular trinitarian
form.
Frank
Wesley, a Methodist from Northern India, lives at present, like A.D.
Thomas and Angela Trinidade, outside of India. He intends to paint the
external rather than the historical Christ, to paint Him with Indian
feeling.(c.f.R.W.Taylor, op.cit.p.135). Frank Wesley likes to use
symbols. He is a gifted artist,able to use various styles and methods.
In this way he conveys an idea more than he reveals himself. The
most popular Christian artist in India at present, (popularity
here means demand for her paintings), is Sr. Genevieve, now at Bangalore,
a nun of French origin. She likes to give importance to lines and
to striking colours. (There are two pictures
by her in the Thomas Encyclopaedia II, 1973.) Her figures, often the
humble, the meek in the spirit of the Gospels, have an intense quality
of Indianness. She
painted many scenes of the Lords life, especially Christmas scenes. She
has prepared huge compositions, slides series, film strips, and the Old
Testament series of the NBCL Centre, Bangalore. Sr. Genevieve, in more
recent years, has raised a voice of warning against the use of Hindu
symbols, which she regards, to a large extent, as unsuitable for use in
Christian paintings. Sr.
Genevieve's disciple, Sr. Claire from Andhra Pradesh, a convert from
Hinduism, is a member of the same religious congregation as Sr.
Genevieve. Sr. Claire has great talent, her paintings are attractive,
simple, and full of feeling. At Nueremberg, Germany, a calendar for 1976
with her pictures was published. She writes about these pictures, I love
our Mother Mary so much that you will find her on all my pictures.
Recently she has worked with cloth also and for silk-screen printing and
painted two sets of stations of the cross. Jyoti
Sahi, Catholic from Bangalore, had some ashram experience and has a wide
cultural background. He built his home, an artists ashram, in a village
near Bangalore. He wrote ( 19.2.76) about a prospective chela, I would
teach the person what I can, but would expect the person to be fully
involved in my work, that would be not only painting, but helping in the
village, doing things about the house, even gardening at times, helping
me to teach others - you know, the sort of creativity events I am
increasingly involved in. It would be good if he thought of the
possibility of
religious art being his profession eventually. Jyoti Sahi combines art
with theological reflection. His lectures at the Jnana Deepa Vidyapeetha,
Pune are greatly appreciated. For him the symbols of the Hindu tradition
are to be creatively interpreted. It can be said about him, that he
searches for the Unknown Christ in Hinduism. Missio, Germany, published
a beautiful calendar with mandalas (symbols helpful for meditation) in
1975. This was received as a gift of the Indian Church to a Church in
the West, in a spirit of partnership. Due
to shortage of space we can mention only the names of other Christian
artists: A. Alphonso, Madras; Sudhir Bairagi, Bengal; Frederick
Chellappa; Anthony Doss; F. N. DSouza; Eustace Fernandes, Bombay; John
W. Gonsalves; Taba Jamyang, Mussoorie; Peter Lewis; K.N. Misra, Lucknow;
Lemuel Patole, Bombay, (now - 1976 - in
the USA); Albert O. Pengal, Bombay; Duckett J. Prim; G. D. Paul Raj;
Olympio C. Rodrigues, Bombay; V. M. Sathe; G. R. Singh; Sr. Sylvestra,
FMM, Madras; Sr.Theresa, O. Carm., Sitagarha; Marcus Topno (+), Ranchi;
Joseph V. Ubale (+), Bombay; W. Vandekerckhove, SJ, Ranchi. In the field
of painting modern Indian Christian art has achieved considerable
results. As regards statuary, most of what is produced is
on the level of artistically inferior plaster-of-Paris
production. The artistic level of the 17th century has not been reached.
The more extensive use of wood, metal and ivory for statues would mark a
big step forward. The present (1976) mood for function and utility does
not include sufficient encouragement for the promotion of embroidery and
woodwork. Conclusion:
A
number of other artists and
a large number of objects of art and architecture aught to be dealt with
in this article. Some areas and locations are almost left out. But it is
hoped that a general appreciation of the origin and development of
Indian Christian art, its variety, its spread, its influence could be
gained from what has been attempted here. Notes:
1.
M. G. S. Narayanan, Cultural
Symbiosis in Kerala, Trivandrum, 1972, p.1. 2.
Id., p. vii. 3.
George Menachery in
Kodungallur : City of St. Thomas, Kodungallur, 1987, p.4, et.sq.
of 2000 reprint. 4.
Id. p. 19, n.3 which refers to the many relevant maps in Bjorn Landstorm,
The Quest for India, Stockholm, 1964
and in the Atlas by
G.M. in Menachery, George (Ed.), The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia
of India, Vol. I, esp. those dealing with the Journeys of
St. Thomas, Marco Polo, B. Diaz, & St. F. Xavier. 5.
We quote from the edition by Schurhammer,
Georg, The Malabar Church and Rome, Trichinopoly, 1934, the relevant
portion of which is reprinted in the
Indian Church History Classics, Vol. I The Nazranies,
Ed. G. Menachery, Ollur, Jan. 1998, pp.526 - 529. 6.
Cf. Scaria Zachariah, Udayamperur Soonnahadosinte Kaanonakal, in
Malayalam, 1998. 7.
Jornada, Lisbon and Coimbra, 1606. A new English translation is being
published by the LIREC, Mount St. Thomas, Ernakulam. 8.
London, 1694; reprinted in Vol. II of Hough, History of Christianity in
India, pp.511 - 683; and a
new rendering in Menachery (Ed.), The Nazranies, pp. 31 - 112. 9.
Schurhammer, op. cit. p.526, col.2 in The Nazranies. 10.
Id., ibid. 11.
Geddes, op. cit., passim. Visits to Mangate (Alangad), Cheuree (Chowara),
Canhur (Kanjur), Molandurte (Mulanthuruthi), Carturte (Kaduthuruthy),
Nagpili (Nagapuzha), Diamper (Udayamperur),Paru (Parur), are quite
illuminative in this respect. 12.
History of Indian and Eastern Architecture, London, 1876. Quoted by
Menachery, George in Pallikkalakalum Mattum (Malayalam), Trichur, 1984,
p.60. 13.
This writer during interviews on Radio Vatican in 1975 and 1978. 14.
For these thoughts vide G.
Menachery, Pallikalile Kala, Mathrubhoomi Weekly, March 1978. 15.
For details Pallikkalakalum Mattum
and also paper by Menachery, G.,
Social Life and Customs of the St. Thomas Christians in the Pre-Diamper
Period, Mt. St. Thomas, June 1999. Printed in The Life and Nature of the
St. Thomas Christian Church in the Pre - Diamper Period, Ed. Bosco
Puthur, Kochi, 2000, pp.188 - 203. Also the writers papers at the World
Syriac Conferences and the Societas Liturgica Congress reproduced in
various issues of the HARP, Kottayam (Ed. Dr. Jacob Thekkepparampil)
and the St. Thomas Christians Journal. Rajkot ( Ed. Mar Gregory
Karotempral). 16.
For hundreds of illustrations dealing with the art and architecture of
Kerala Christians see Vol. II of the STCEI (alternately the Thomapedia)
and the Nazranies. 17.
India in 1500 A. D. about Joseph the Indian by A. Vallavanthara,
Trivandrum, 1984, chapters 4 and 5. 18.
His unpublished paper Construction
of Images in the Art of Early Christian Churches, presented at Trichur
and Kottayam which may be
seen on the ICHR website. Also see articles by Dr. James Menachery and
P.Andrews Athappally in the STCEI, II, Trichur, 1973. 19.
From Yule Ed. Cordier, Travels of Marco Polo , Vol. II, London, 1926 reproduced in the STCEI, II, pp.12, col. 2 ff. 20.
George Menachery, Malayala Manorama, Sunday Supplement, April 19, 1987. 21.
Unpublished article written by Mathew Lederle (21.2.1976) for the St.
Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India now scheduled to be included in
STCEI Vol.III. 22.
T.P. Issar, Goa Dourada The Indo-Portuguese Bouquet, Unesco aided work,
Bangalore,1997. This interesting
volume has an excellent collection of photographs dealing
exhaustively with the art and architecture of the Goan Circle along with
many insightful comments. 23.
Lederle, op. cit. 24.
Issar, op. cit., p.35. 25.
There were constructed in Goa hundreds of churches, chapels, wayside
crosses and statues, monasteries, and convents in the 16th, 17th, and
18th centuries. For example 25 churches in Ilhas, 25 in Salcete, 7 in
Marmugao, 27 in Bardez, and dozens in other locations including Old Goa.
Other Portuguese territories also had their own share of churches in
these centuries. Cf., f.i., An Illustrated Guide to Goa, Furtado,1922
(pp.183 ff.). Also cf. the many other
guides, ecclesiastical directories, and publications. 26.
Lederle, op. cit. 27.
Lederle, op. cit. As this pathbreaking article written in 1976 by. Fr.
Lederle for the St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia could not be included
in the 1982 volume by this writer and as it did not see the light of day
during the authors lifetime large portions from it are being reproduced
here for the first time. 28.Lederle,
op. cit. 29.Lederle,
op. cit. 30.Lederle, op. cit.
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