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Showing posts with the label colonial Baroque

Historical Churches of Iloilo

Miagao Church or Santo Tomas de Villanueva Parish Church The Miag-ao Church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with three other colonial Baroque churches under the collective title, Baroque Churches of the Philippines. Please follow this link for my article on Miagao Church:  https://travelswithcharie.blogspot.com/2014/03/miag-ao-church.html Fortress Towers of Miagao Church The two belltowers are of unequal height and served as watchtowers following Islamic invasions in 1741 and 1754. Main Altar, Miagao Church The gold-plated retablo is the original altar used in the late 1700s and was found during excavations in 1982. A fire had ravaged the church in 1910 and it was believed the retablo had been razed as well.  Guimbal Church or San Nicolas de Tolentino Guimbal Church is one of the oldest churches in the Philippines. It was built in 1774 and restored twice, once after World War II and after the earthquake of 1948 which also destroyed the Jaro Cath

Santa Monica Parish Church

Church of Pan-ay or Santa Monica Church The original church in Pan-ay was first established in 1774. A little over a century later, in 1875, a typhoon devastated that structure. It was reconstructed in 1884 and that is the church we see today. It is a fine example of the colonial Baroque style of architecture. Its walls of coral stone are three meters thick (about 9.84 feet). Renovations have been made in recent years to the roof and belfry which have suffered from termites and the ravages of time. Santa Monica Parish Church has been declared a National Historical Landmark by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. Main altar In the aftermath of typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda in 2013, the church was damaged once again. The patches on the walls that you see in these images are part of the repairs made to make the structure safe and sound. The floor of the church consists of terra cotta tiles accented by white marble and black slate tiles. The black and whit

Miag-ao Church

It's a 35-minute drive from Iloilo City proper to Miag-ao along well paved roads. We left the city around five in the afternoon and arrived in Miag-ao just after sunset. I've had to filter these photos as it was too dark to get any clear images. Miag-ao Catholic Church or the Church of Santo Tomas de Villanueva is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It was completed in 1797 and ravaged during the 1898 Philippine revolution against Spain, during World War II and again during the 1948 earthquake. The walls, the belfries and the facade are all that is left of the original structure.  Miag-ao Church is a fine example of colonial Baroque. The facade of the Church is of yellow ocher limestone which was quarried from nearby mountains. It is decorated in high relief with a palm tree on the top and center of the triangular frame. St. Christopher with the child Jesus on his shoulder is under the palm tree and they are surrounded by indigenous flora. In the niche below S