The Little Basilica of San Sebastian, more commonly known as San Sebastian Church, is a Roman Catholic church located in Manila. It houses the parish of St. Sebastian and the national shrine - the statue of the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel. The church, which was completed in 1891, is a fine of the neo-Gothic style. It is the only all-metal basilica in all of Asia! Moreover, it is also the only prefabricated metal church in the world. in the world. In 2006, the Basilica of San Sebastian was included in the "queue" in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a national landmark of the Philippines.
The history of the church dates back to way back in 1621, when Don Bernardino Castillo, a generous patron and zealous admirer of the Christian great martyr St Sebastian, donated the plot of land on which the church stands today. The first church building, constructed of wood, burned down in 1651 during the the Chinese uprising. Subsequent brick buildings were also destroyed by fires and earthquakes in 1859, 1863 and 1880. In 1880, the parish priest of the church, which lay in ruins, Esteban Martínez approached Spanish architect Genaro Palacios with a project to construct a steel building that would that would be resistant to fire and natural disasters. Palacios accepted the proposal, and he created a masterpiece - it's said to be modelled after the Gothic cathedral in Burgos, Spain.
The steel sections for the construction of the church were manufactured in Belgium: 52 tonnes of of parts were transported to the Philippines on eight ships in 1888. Belgian engineers personally supervised the assembly of the church - the first column was erected in 1890. The walls were filled with a mixture of sand, gravel and cement. The windows with stained glass were brought in from Germany, and local craftsmen helped to put the finishing touches of the steel church.
In June 1890, the Church of San Sebastian was granted the status of minor basilica by Pope Pope Leo XIII. And the following year, fully assembled, the church was consecrated by Archbishop Bernardo Nozaleda of Manila.
For a long time, it was believed that Gustave Eiffel - Gustave Eiffel, the designer of the famous Eiffel Tower, was directly involved in the design of the church. This connection was allegedly confirmed by Filipino historian Ambeth Ocampo during a search in the the archives of Paris. Ocampo even published a report that in 1970, renowned architect I.M. Pey visited Manila to verify rumours about Eiffel's role in the in the construction of San Sebastian Church. According to this report, Pei confirmed that the the metal fastenings and the structure as a whole was designed by Eiffel. Nevertheless, this theory is still considered unproven.
The interior of the church displays the cross vaults of the Gothic Gothic architectural style. The steel columns, walls and ceiling were painted by Lorenzo Rocha and his apprentices in marble and jasper. To decorate the interior, the technique of optical illusion the technique of optical illusion was used to decorate the interior. The confessionals, the preacher's pulpit, altars and the five chancel shelves were decorated according to the neo-Gothic style. Six fonts were also created for the church - each carved in Romblon marble.
Above the main altar is a statue of the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, donated to the church by the Carmelite sisters from Mexico in 1617. The statue has survived all the fires and earthquakes that destroyed previous structures, but in 1975, the head was lost - it was stolen.
