San Thome Basilica, Minor basilica in Santhome, Chennai, India
San Thome Basilica is a church in the neo-Gothic style with white outer walls, two slender towers, and large stained glass windows. Inside, a central nave leads to an altar, beneath which lies a crypt.
Portuguese sailors built an early chapel in the 16th century at the spot where the apostle Thomas is believed to be buried. The present church was rebuilt in the 19th century in the neo-Gothic style and later elevated to basilica status.
The name San Thome comes from the Portuguese "San Thome", meaning Saint Thomas, not from Tamil. A gold-painted wooden statue of the Virgin Mary, brought from Lisbon in 1523 and called Mylai Matha, stands left of the altar; her feast is held in December, with devotion on the second Saturday of each month, a tradition held to have begun with Francis Xavier.
The church stands in a busy neighborhood of Chennai, easy to reach from the coastal road. A small museum inside displays objects from the site's history.
The second spire rises from the centre of the church to mark the spot believed to be Thomas's tomb, while the taller 45-metre spire on the left of the entrance serves as a bell tower. A wooden pole kept at the church is held by worshippers to have been washed ashore and erected by Thomas, and they credit it with saving the church from the 2004 tsunami.
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