Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Salvador
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The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception (Portuguese: Basílica Nossa Senhora da Conceição da Praia), or the Basilica of the Conception, is a church in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. It is affiliated with the Catholic Church and was built in 1623, making it one of the oldest parishes in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of São Salvador da Bahia.[1][2][3][4] It was the first church built by the first governor-general of Brazil, Tomé de Sousa. The current structure was prefabricated in Portugal and assembled in Salvador; its construction began in 1739 and ended in the mid 19th century. The art historian Germain Bazin classifies the church as Portuguese in design, rather than part of the Bahian tradition of religious structures of the 17th and 18th century.[5][6][7]
Basilica of the Immaculate Conception | |
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Religion | |
Affiliation | Catholic |
Rite | Roman |
Location | |
Municipality | Salvador |
State | Bahia |
Country | Brazil |
Geographic coordinates | 12.975300°S 38.514290°W / -12.975300; -38.514290 |
Architecture | |
Architect(s) | Manuel Cardoso Saldanha |
Groundbreaking | 1739 |
Completed | 1849 |
Specifications | |
Length | 56 metres (184 ft) |
Width | 43.9 metres (144 ft) |
Designated | 1938 |
Reference no. | 122 |
Its monumental façade is a hybrid of Baroque and Neoclassical styles, and is based on church façades of the period in Portugal. The building was designed by Manuel Cardoso Saldanha; the master bricklayer and architect Eugénio da Mota prepared the stonework in Portugal and accompanied it to Salvador. Its elevation to the status of basilica took place in 1946. Pope Pius XII declared Our Lady of Conception the sole patron of the State of Bahia. Robert C. Smith described the structure as the "first and most complete expression in Brazil of the new Baroque style that succeeded Mannerism in Portugal in the early years of John V's reign." The Portuguese art historian João Miguel dos Santos Simões stated that "Among the remarkable examples of 18th-century architecture that the Portuguese built on Brazilian soil, this one, honoring the patron saint of the Kingdom, stands out in historical importance and majesty."[8][6][9][7]