Basilica Minore de San Sebastian
The Basilica Minore de San Sebastian, also known as San Sebastian Church, is a Roman Catholic minor basilica in Manila.
The final Basilica was completed in 1891. It is the best known example of Gothic Architecture here in the Philippines. It has also been implausibly reputed to be the first prefabricated building in the world, and more plausibly claimed as the only prefabricated steel church in the world.
It is located at Quiapo, Manila, Philippines. It has a Neo-Gothic Architectural Style and; Basilica as an Architectural type. The most common materials used was steel, mixed sand, gravel & cement.Genaro Palacios
- A Spanish Architect
- He is the Director of Public Works of the Insular Government
- Genaro Palacios was appointed by Esteban Martinez (the parish priest of the ruined church) to re-design the ruined Basilica of San Sebastian. The previous 2 basilicas standing at the said location was destroyed by fire and earthquake. This led Palacios to plan a fire and earthquake resistant for the Basilica, making the church made up of entirely steel.
Purpose
A basilica/church for the mass.
History
In 1621, San Sebastian Church was first built with the help of Don Bernardino Castillo, a patron and a devotee to Christian martyr Saint Sebastian. He was the one who donated the land where the Basilica stands now. It was originally made up of wood, and was later on burned down in 1651, during a Chinese uprising. The ruined structure was revived which was built from brick and were destroyed by fire and earthquake in 1859, 1863 and 1880.
The current design that we see right now came upon in 1880, as the parish priest of the ruined parish, Esteban Martinez, requested Architect Genaro Palacios to design a cathedral that can withstand and can both resist fires and earthquakes.
Hoax
It was also said the Gustave Eiffel, the designer of the Eiffel Tower and the steel design of the Statue of Liberty in New York. Though, there were no official statement that he was the one who designed the building.
Chinese American Architect I.M. Pei, visited the Philippines in the 70's because he heard that Eifell was building an all-steel structure in the Philippines.
Details/Analysis
The Basilica welcomed me with a giant light green spires, towering a 105 feet, with a huge rose window, embedded stained glass and Gothic’s own pointed arches.When I first entered the church, just looking in from the outside already amazes me. It's the first time I saw a church in the Philippines which has a Gothic type of Architecture. The first thing that I noticed was the groined vault design of the ceiling, it's really hard to ignore. When I roamed around the church, when I was at the Central nave looking at the altar, there I saw massive steel towers of columns supporting the groined vaults to almost 40 feet high.
I also researched about the paintings that I saw at the groined ceiling, and it was done by Lorenzo Rocha, a Mexican Architect.
On both sides of the church, colorful stained glass windows and Trompe l'oeil (3D-like paintings) artworks line the hall. The centerpiece above the altar is an image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel which was given to the church by the Carmelite sisters from Mexico City in 1617.
Dealing with Rust
Yes, the building right now is fire and earthquake-tested but there's one factor that affects the building, which is rust. It has survived the countless disasters of human nature that could give.In Manila, with its humidity and frequent rains, the church needs to be covered, every five years with several layers of paint. San Sebastian was also once listed under the World Monument’s Fund list of 100 Most Endangered Structures. For some unknown reason, the church did not accept the grant of $25,000 and whole thing was return to the agency.
It's very sad to know that it's very possible to say that this structure is just a stone-throw away from collapsing. I hope that government would somehow preserve and keep the structure strong ang stable. It's really one of the best churches that I've been to and I can say that it's very rare. The ambiance inside is really classic. But at the same time, it's sad because this structure doesn't have the same fame of the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty, and any minute, it could just demolish itself. I really hope this church could be preserved.
Supporting Details
- The prefabricated steel sections that molded the church were manufactured from Binche, Belgium. 52 tons of prefabriacted steel sections were transported in eight separate shipments from Belgium to the Philippines.- The stained glass windows were imported from the Henri Oidtmann Company, a German stained glass firm.
- It only took them a year to renovate and to finish the construction in Manila.
Why I chose this building
I chose this building because most of our discussions that spanned the midterm half was all about Religous-based Architecture such as Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance Era. I felt that having a church would fit our past discussions and I'd be able to present them well because they were already taught to us.Then, I only got the San Sebastian Church and the Binondo Church. I chose San Sebastian because I felt something about that church, besides from it being beautiful. It turned out to be just good, rather than my first 2 options, fortunately.
Trivia:
- It is said that it one needs to reserve a year in advance just to get wed inside its lofty hall.
- It is the only all-steel basilica in Manila.
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