After years of painstaking restoration work, the 450-year-old Church of Santa Monica at Old Goa will be opened to the public on Friday. The formal opening will be carried out by Archbishop of Goa and Daman, Filipe Neri Ferraro.
The church, part of the Convent of Santa Monica, Asia’s first and the largest Convent in Old Goa and also a State-protected monument, has been restored by the Museum of Christian Art Goa (MCAG) with financial assistance from the Goa Directorate of Archives and Archaeology.
Exquisite art workThe renovation was necessitated as the church’s exquisite altars, pulpit, crucifix, statues, paintings and other art objects had worn out over the years.
Through the MCAG, the Archdiocese sought technical assistance related to conservation from architect Ketak Nachinolkar and two globally renowned art restorers, the late Miguel Mateus and Jose Pestana of Portugal.
They made a detailed study of the state of the church, the extent of deterioration and draw up a comprehensive restoration project proposal. The State government provided a grant of Rs. 1.3 crores in two phases for the refurbishment.
The church will serve as the venue for devotional music concerts and temporary art exhibitions organised by the MCAG, a spokesperson of the MCAG said.
