Santa Maria Church (Ilocos Sur)
Santa Maria Pro-cathedral | |
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Archdiocesan Shrine of Our Lady of the Assumption | |
Santuario Arquidiocesano de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción ( Nueva Segovia | |
Deanery | St. Lucy[2] |
Parish | Our Lady of the Assumption |
Clergy | |
Priest(s) | Fr. Ronilo Guerrero Villa Fr. Erylle Emanuelle Tacla Cordero |
Official name | Church of Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion |
Part of | Baroque Churches of the Philippines |
Criteria | Cultural: (ii)(iv) |
Reference | 677bis-002 |
Inscription | 1993 (17th Session) |
Extensions | 2013 |
National Historical Landmarks | |
Official name | Santa Maria Church |
Designated | August 1, 1973 |
Reference no. | No. 260, s. 1973 |
The Archdiocesan Shrine of Our Lady of the Assumption (
The Santa Maria Church is an attraction to tourists and Catholics in Ilocos Sur. It is a reminder of the four centuries of Spanish domination of that area and a unique structure with a diversified architectural design of bricks and mortar. It was built on top of a hill a lookout and a citadel as well as a religious center during the early administration of the region by friars and soldiers of Spain.
History
The parish of Santa Maria started as a
According to the legend, before the Santa Maria Church was built on its present site, the Virgin Mary was enshrined at a different place called Bulala. The frequent disappearance of the Virgin Mary from her previous place of enthronement only to be found perched on a guava tree that grew where the present church is located, had led the townspeople to move the church to its present location.
Father Mariano Dacanay, the Ilocano parish priest from September 1, 1902, to May 27, 1922, has another variation of this legend which he assures, was gathered from reliable sources. He relates that the Blessed Virgin was enthroned in another chapel that was formerly erected below the present church and what is now the East Central Elementary School compound. Father Dacanay adds, that from this chapel, the Virgin Mary made her peregrinations to that guava tree on the knoll.
This version of Father Dacanay of the legend gains greater probability if not credence for today, one of the twin structures bearing the features and architectural designs of what could have been a chapel or a church by then obtaining standards remains intact in said school compound and presently used as a classroom for grade school pupils.
Numerous and varying legends or stories about the Virgin Mother have long become part of Philippine religious lore. And if any one of them could be accepted as truth, then it is the blessed Virgin herself who manifested in a miraculous way her preference of a site for her permanent home.
Construction of the present church was started in 1765.[3][5] In 1810, the bell tower was built during the renovation of the church and furnished with a bell the following year. During the renovation of church complex in 1863, the protective wall around the sides of the hill was constructed.[4] After the bell tower was remodeled the same year, its foundation must have gradually settled down making the imposing structure slightly leaning or tilting as it appears today. The convent was greatly renovated in 1895.
Many foreigners who traveled to the north and saw the church were much impressed by its size and setting calling the church as a
At Santa Maria a most picturesque church is to be found, reached on an imposing flight of steps. An enormous convent stands beside the church, upon a terrace some 80 feet above the plaza. There are a number of brick buildings, schoolhouses and office, which must have been very handsome but are tumbling down, the streets being in the absolute possession of sheeps, goats and hogs. A great expanse of level land was now well-cultivated into paddy fields and across it is a road fifteen feet wide, well-metalled and with a sandy surface. Barrios and homes were scattered all around the plain.
The church was listed as one of the most endangered monuments in the world by
The parish church was elevated to an archdiocesan shrine on August 15, 2022.[7]
Design
Unlike other town churches in the Philippines, which conform to the Spanish tradition of sitting them on the central
Façade
The church brick façade has one large portal with three windows. The recessed arched entrance is flanked by a pair of rectangular pilaster dividing the façade into three well-defined planes. The whole façade is then framed on the sides by heavy circular buttresses topped by urn-like finials.
An
The church follows the standard Philippine layout with the façade fronting a long single
Bell tower
The bell tower is freestanding, constructed separate from the church and not parallel to the façade but situated about a third of the wall from the front. The octagonal four-story tower was built wide, with each level narrowing till it reaches the top, typical of earthquake baroque church towers. The top floor is covered by a
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The relief of Our Lady of Assumption on a tree on the first front buttress
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The pagoda-like bell tower
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The elevated walkway connecting the convent to the church
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The stairway leading to the church courtyard
Convent
In front of the church is the convent, partly blocking the frontal view of the façade of Santa Maria Church. The placement of the convent in front of the church and not adjacent is another unusual characteristic of the building, probably dictated by the long narrow hill on which the church is located. It is accessible from the church by an elevated stone walkway. In the early days of the colonization, the convent was the seat of the ecclesiastical administration as well as home of the church clergies. Under the elevated walkway is a gate that leads to the back courtyard with a commanding view of the back countryside.
Cemetery
Another wide stairway, similar to the front, leads down from the courtyard to a brick walkway that leads to an old abandoned cemetery evergreen with brush and weeds.[9] Within the brick fence of the square-shaped cemetery are the ruins of an old brick chapel and old graveyards.
Historical designations
National Historical Landmark
The National Historical Institute (now the National Historical Commission of the Philippines) installed a marker next to the door of Santa Maria Church following Executive Order nos. 260 on August 1, 1973; 375 on January 14, 1974; and 1515 on June 11, 1978, declaring the Santa Maria Church as a National Historical Landmark.[4]
National Cultural Treasure
With Republic Act No. 10066 - National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009 in place, all structures 50 years or older, structures with historical markers, and all structures designed by National Artists (regardless of age) are now presumed to be declared and cannot be demolished or altered without the permission of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA). This is an attempt to compile all lists of formally declared cultural and historical structures and sites in the Philippines and make it available to the public via the Internet since the National Museum (NM) and National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), both under the NCCA, maintain their own lists. Santa Maria Church Complex and Cemetery was declared one of the National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines in 2015 by the National Museum.
Miraculous image of Our Lady of the Assumption
The statue of Apo Baket is made of wood in ornate sculptural style with ivory face and hands. It is 112 centimeters (44 in) tall. Her hands are extended wide, and her head is looking upward portraying her assumption into heaven. Her blue cape is decorated with silver floral designs and her white dress is embroidered with gold thread motif. She stands on a pedestal of cloud surrounded by angels’ heads. This image with her bejeweled dress was kept in an elaborate carved wooden chest believed to have used for cargo in galleon ship. Her feast day is August 15.[10]
References
- ^ a b Measured using Google Earth.
- ^ "Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia". Claretian Publications. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- ^ a b Dacumos, Jane (August 3, 2012). "The Nuestra Señora de la Asuncion – Ilocos Sur". Vigattin tourism. Retrieved on January 24, 2014.
- ^ a b c National Historical Institute
- ^ "Nuesta Senora de la Asuncion". World Monuments Fund. Retrieved on February 6, 2014.
- ^ Villalon, Augusto F. (November 9, 2009). "3 Philippine monuments land in global endangered list". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved December 16, 2023 – via PressReader.
- ^ "Ilocos Sur's Our Lady of the Assumption Church elevated to archdiocesan shrine". CBCP News. August 15, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
- ^ "Sta. Maria Church, Sta. Maria Ilocos Sur.JPG". Wikimedia Commons.
- ^ Imagine.asia. (December 13, 2007). "Santa Maria Church-3". Panoramio. Retrieved on January 6, 2014.
- ^ "Ilokos Religious Imagery", pg, 122.
External links
- Media related to Santa Maria Church (Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur) at Wikimedia Commons
- Santa Maria Church on Facebook
- Baroque Churches of the Philippines - UNESCO World Heritage Site