Overview

  • Features: Gothic style basilica housing relics of St Thomas, the Apostle
  • Opening Times: 6am to 8pm, daily
  • Best Time to Visit: Any day except Sunday
  • Duration: 20 to 30 mins
  • Travelled By: Train (Thirumayilai)
  • Cost: Free
  • Address: 38 Santhome High Road, Mylapore, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
  • Type: Church

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What We Liked

Tomb of St Thomas, the Apostle.

What We Disliked

Some of the relics are a bit dubious.

Summary

Located in Mylapore, Santhome Basilica is an impressive Gothic-style structure built by the Portuguese in 1898. It has an ornate interior with magnificent stained-glass windows and a towering steeple. The basilica is built over the tomb of the saint which is said to contain a small bone from the saint’s hand and the weapon that killed him.

Santhome Basilica Chennai

 

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Located in Mylapore between Kapaleeshwarar Temple and Marina Beach, Santhome Basilica is a soaring Roman Catholic Church. It was originally built by the Portuguese in 1504, over the supposed tomb of St Thomas, an apostle of Jesus. In 1893, it was rebuilt as a church with the status of a cathedral by the British. The church was replaced by the neo-Gothic structure which has two towering spires and was granted the status of a basilica in 1956. The British version still stands today.

 

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The basilica has an ornate interior with 13th century wall plaques, magnificent stained-glass windows, a 450-year-old Madonna brought from Portugal and a 16th-century stone sundial. The stained-glass windows recount the story of St Thomas’ life, and wooden panels depict Christ’s final days on earth. The interior is also now decked with modern kitsch: bits of tinsel, polystyrene, and a halo of fairy lights.

 

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In the basement is a modern chapel housing the tomb of St Thomas the Apostle (Doubting Thomas), who it is said brought Christianity to the Indian subcontinent in the 1st century. The crypt is said to contain a small bone from the saint’s hand and the weapon that killed him.

Despite consensus among historians to the contrary, South Indian Christian mythology holds that St Thomas, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, arrived in Kerala from Judea in 52 A.D. and preached between 52 A.D. and 72 A.D., when he was martyred on St. Thomas Mount after spending the final years of his life preaching on a nearby beach.

 

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According to one legend, St Thomas crossed the peninsula from his landing on the west coast to reach Mylapore (the ‘Town of Peacocks’) where he proceeded to live and preach, taking shelter from persecution in Little Mount. An alternative story argues King Gondophernes invited him to Taxila, where he converted the king and his court before moving to South India. Some claim that his body was ultimately buried in the Italian town of Ortona.

Marco Polo in his travels in 1293 recorded the chapel on the seashore and a Nestorian monastery on a hill to the west where the apostle was put to death. In 1523, when the Portuguese started to rebuild the church they discovered the tomb containing the relics consisting of a few bones, a lance head and an earthenware pot containing bloodstained earth. The relics are kept in the sacristy and can be seen on request.

 

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Above is a museum containing Thomas-related artifacts of varying degrees of historical dubiousness. There are also relics from other saints as well as Latin missels (holy books) used in the cathedral several centuries ago.

 

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The basilica is now subject to an ambitious US$164,400 restoration project. To stop the Mangalore tile roof leaking, concrete reparations are being peeled back and replaced with original lime mortar.

 

Getting to & from Santhome Basilica

Santhome Basilica is located in Mylapore between Kapaleeshwarar Temple and Marina Beach. The most affordable way to get here is to take a train to Thirumayilai train station and then walk the 1 km distance to the basilica. You can stop at Kapaleeshwarar Temple on the way here. Alternatively, you can take an auto rickshaw or taxi which will take you straight to the basilica. Private cars with chauffeurs are also available to hire for the day from reputable hotels or travel agencies in town.

 

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