Explore Basilica Minore de San Sebastian in Quiapo

Quiapo, City of Manila

It was a Saturday, my favorite day, my free day. After exploring San Bartolome church in Malabon a few weeks ago, I decided to visit another old church located just almost at my doorstep and explore it.

San Sebastian Church Old Photograph
Photo Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgqAh_k5M5jmxwcipCEN_e04lw5lhLxREyaTK_ELHLqhrMWI8MBQkwzbDS7g6md-1qlEOdkeSqT4A7kzzacnoe3XyBfuwLYMHv7I0Z-GIUTEoEePPmMGEtNls0pDpWiGyrUalHzohdvpR-/s1600/debra.jpg

For many times, I had been passing by Plaza Del Carmen in Quiapo on my route to Intramuros every Sunday for my Sunday obligation at San Agustin church and had been gazing at the light-green facade and pointed bell towers of San Sebastian church but never had the chance to explore it and make some photographs.

San Sebastian Church at Plaza Del Carmen

From my residence at Nagtahan, I took a jeep bound for Divisoria and alighted at Recto. A few steps away is the San Sebastian Church.

San Sebastian church is known for being the only all-steel church in Asia. This is in response to the numerous earthquakes that hit Manila in the last 300 years that destroyed many of the ancestors of the present San Sebastian church.

 

Construction of San Sebastian Church Old Photograph (Right)
Photo Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQebLsrQ0xX3DF51DrFLl_XMVgqIxATEUhzGuJD3TebwjPn5NdIdxZFIVzt0fjqWREJxXwVdl1lQrPN6TnTQkhBWVD2nqlBPP8WL4crLBP47F4ELw4nPc2bebm3Ss929etzlQYd5Mrq_o/s1600-h/ss1fb.jpg

Background: The Basilica Minore de San Sebastian, better known as San Sebastian Church, is a Roman Catholic minor basilica in Manila, Philippines. It is the seat of the Parish of San Sebastian and the National Shrine of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel.

Completed in 1891, San Sebastian Church is noted for its architectural features. an example of the revival of Gothic architecture in the Philippines, it is the only all-steel church or basilica in asia, and claimed as the only prefabricated steel church in the world. In 2006, San Sebastian Church was included in the Tentative List for possible designation as a World Heritage Site. It was designated as a National Historical Landmark by the Philippine government in 1973.

San Sebastian Church is under the care of The Order of the augustinian Recollects, who also operate a college adjacent to the basilica. It is located at Plaza del Carmen, at the eastern end of Claro M. Recto Street, in Quiapo, Manila.

In 1621, Don Bernardino Castillo, a generous patron and a devotee of the Christian martyr Saint Sebastian, donated the land upon which the church stands now. The original church, made of wood, burned in 1651 during a Chinese uprising. The succeeding structures, which were built of brick, were destroyed by fire and earthquakes in 1859, 1863, and 1880.

In the 1880s, Esteban Martinez, the parish priest of the ruined church, approached the Spanish architect, Genaro Palacios, with a plan to build a fire and earthquake-resistant structure made entirely of steel. Palacios completed a design that fused Earthquake Baroque with the Neo-Gothic style. His final design was said to have been inspired by the famed Gothic Burgos Cathedral in Burgos, Spain.

The prefabricated steel sections that would compose the church were manufactured in Binche, Belgium.

According to the historian Ambeth Ocampo, the knockdown steel parts were ordered from the Societe anonyme des Enterprises de Travaux Publiques in Brussels. In all, 52 tonnes (51 long tons; 57 short tons) of prefabricated steel sections were transported in eight separate shipments from Belgium to the Philippines, the first shipment arriving in 1888.

Belgian engineers supervised the assembly of the church, the first column of which was erected on September 11, 1890. The walls were filled with mixed sand, gravel and cement. The stained glass windows were imported from the Henri Oidtmann Company, a German stained glass firm, while local artisans assisted in applying the finishing touches of the steel church.

The church was raised to the status of a minor basilica by Pope Leo XIII on June 24, 1890. Upon its completion the following year, on August 16, 1891, Basilica Minore de San Sebastian was consecrated by the archbishop of Manila, Bernardo Nozaleda (Wikipedia).

I was at Sebastian church an hour before 12 noon and I was so lucky to see that the church was open. I learned that a baptismal ceremony was just completed and I was the only person inside the church.

Church Interior of Gothic Architecture

It was quite dark inside the church and all the stained glass windows were casting a beautiful reflection inside the church from the sun.

The center isle was covered with the red carpet.

Main Altar and Steel Pulpit

San Sebastian church architecture features a Gothic architecture. The old Trompe l'oeil paintings on the wall still exist and of course the old pulpit still hangs on the steel column near the altar.

 

The biggest challenge for San Sebastian church is rust. The exterior needs to be repainted with several layers to keep it safe from rust. There are evidences of rust on the columns and walls of the church from inside.

I learned that the steel were fabricated in Belgium and then transported to Manila on board 6 ships and then assembled in Manila at the church present location by Belgian engineers like a Lego.

Church Main Entrance

There were also claims that Gustave Eiffel may have been involved in the design of San Sebastian Church.

No matter who designed San Sebastian, undoubtedly, it is a great achievement, a heritage and an important monument that must be protected.

Main Altar and Stained Glass

This church is one of the few structures that survived the bombings of World War II.

Having the chance to explore San Sebastian church was an accomplishment for me.

I am impressed by the Gothic architecture of this marvelous steel structure.

See more photos.

-o0o-