Basilica of Bom Jesus

The Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa is one of the finest Baroque churches in Asia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1986. Consecrated in 1605 as a Jesuit church, it was built from locally quarried red laterite and features a three-story west facade combining Composite and Ionic pilasters with Baroque ornament. Inside rests the body of St. Francis Xavier, the 16th-century Jesuit missionary known as the Apostle of the Indies, preserved in a silver reliquary completed in 1698. The reported incorruptibility of Xavier's remains drew pilgrims from across Asia for centuries; his relics are still exposed to public veneration once every decade, most recently in 2024. The gilded main altar, baroque baldachin, and painted ceiling panels together make this one of the most richly decorated Catholic interiors on the Indian subcontinent.