Our Lady of Penha Chapel, Macau
The Our Lady of Penha Chapel (Chinese: 西望洋聖堂; Portuguese: Capela de Nossa Senhora da Penha) is a church in Penha Hill, São Lourenço, Macau, China.
| Our Lady of Penha Chapel | |
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| Location | São Lourenço, Macau |
| Country | China |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural type | church |
| Style | Neo-Manueline |
| Completed | 1622 (first building) 1837 (second building) 1935 (current building) |
| Our Lady of Penha Chapel, Macau | |||||||||||
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| Chinese | 西望洋聖堂 | ||||||||||
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History
The church was first erected in 1622 by the crew of the Portuguese ship São Bartholomeu who had a narrow escape from their Dutch pursuers in the Taiwan Strait while en route from Macau to Nagasaki. The crew vowed to build a church to commemorate the Virgin Mary if they managed to return to Macau, and made good on that promise upon their return.[1]
The land where the church stands was donated by the Senate of the Augustinians for the construction of the church, which was dedicated to the Our Lady of Penha of France. The church was then constructed in 1622 and became the property of the Augustinians until 1834 when they were expelled from Macau. In 1837, the church was reconstructed along with the Bishop residence next to it. In 1935, it was then again completely rebuilt in the Neo-Manueline style.[1][2]
Architecture
At the front courtyard of the church stands the Our Lady of Lourdes statue. At the steps of the hillside staircase exists the picturesque grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes.[2]
References
- Boxer, C. R., Fidalgos in the Far East, 1550–1770. Martinus Nijhoff (The Hague), 1948. p. 70
- "Our Lady of Penha Church". Trappistine Community. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
External links
- Chapel of Our Lady of Penha – Macao Government Tourism Office website