St. Mary's Church, Negombo

Coordinates: 7°12′04″N 79°50′17″E / 7.201°N 79.838°E

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St. Mary’s Church
St. Mary’s Church, Negombo
Religion
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
Rite	Latin Rite
Status	Active
Location
Location	Negombo, Sri Lanka
Architecture
Type	Church
Style	Neoclassicism
Groundbreaking	1874
Completed	1922

St. Mary's Church is a landmark edifice, a Roman Catholic church in the heart of Negombo. It is one of the largest Catholic church in Sri Lanka.^[1]

Location

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St. Mary's Church is located in the Grand Street in the centre of Negombo.^[2]^[3]

History

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Negombo has been influenced greatly by the Christian faith from the time it was occupied by the Portuguese. It is often called "Little Rome" in view of the large number of churches in the city.^[4]

Construction of the church was started in 1874 and completed, after a long gap, in 1922.^[1] The art and architecture of this church and a few similar other churches in Sri Lanka demonstrate the cultural amalgamation of the European practice with Sri Lankan art and architecture during the early years of the 20th century.^[5]

Features

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The church was built in neoclassicism style with columns and plain walls. Its ceilings are painted with alabaster images of many saints. The walls at the upper level are fixed with sculptures of religious saints.^[1] The unique paintings on the life of Christ on the ceiling were done by the N.S. Godamanne, a local Buddhist painter.^[3] The beauty of the paintings on the nave is described as "thunderous".^[4] A testator paid the cost of one of the altars, which was imported from Europe.^[6]

References

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^ ^a ^b ^c "St Mary's Church, the crowning glory of Negombo". Negombo News. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
^ Cummings 2006, p. 112.
^ ^a ^b "Religious fervour and communal harmony in Negombo". Daily News. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
^ ^a ^b Atkinson 2009, p. 106.
^ Pinto 2015, p. 105.
^ Śrēṣṭhādhikaraṇaya 1974, p. 227.

Bibliography

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Atkinson, Brett (2009). Sri Lanka. Lonely Planet. ISBN 978-1-74104-835-3.
Cummings, Joe (2006). Sri Lanka. Ediz. Inglese. Lonely Planet. ISBN 978-1-74059-975-7.
Guides, Insight (2 November 2015). Insight Guides: Sri Lanka. APA. ISBN 978-1-78005-545-9.
Pinto, Leonard (14 July 2015). Being a Christian in Sri Lanka: Historical, Political, Social, and Religious Considerations. Balboa Press. ISBN 978-1-4525-2862-5.
Śrēṣṭhādhikaraṇaya, Sri Lanka. (1974). Reports of Sri Lanka Tax Cases: Containing Cases Decided by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and Her Majesty the Queen in Her Privy Council on Appeal from the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka (Ceylon) on Income Tax, Excess Profits Duty, Profits Tax, Personal Tax, Business Turnover Tax, Surcharge on Income Tax, Estate Duty, and Stamp Duty. Department of Inland Revenue.

7°12′04″N 79°50′17″E / 7.201°N 79.838°E / 7.201; 79.838

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