A former railway bridge spanning a creek.

Unknown to the newer generation, Cebu used to have a railway system that stretched from as far as Argao down south all the way to Danao up north. The central station and the depot were located in Cebu City somewhere at the area now occupied by the Cebu South Bus Terminal and the CITOM-LTO compound. The railway system ceased to function after World War II. Buses then were beginning to gain popularity among the locals. According to a historian, some of the railroad tracks were eventually sold by the government to sugar milling companies. Continue Reading »

The church of Sto. Tomás de Villanueva in El Pardo, Cebu City was designed by Domingo de Escondrillas, a Spanish architect and engineer in Cebu who also designed several other edifices in the island. Building of the church started between 1873 and 1893 after it separated from San Nicolas in 1866 to become an independent parish. Back then, El Pardo was once a town that was separate from Cebu City.

The church is distinctively unique among other stone churches in Cebu. Sporting a massive fortress-like facade with a porte-cochère at the main entrance, the church reminds visitors of a small castle or a fort standing tall on an elevated plain facing the eastern coast. Did the domed-parapet host a cannon or any piece of artillery as defense for marauding invaders? Did the balcony at the top of the belfry double as a watchtower? When the church was completed by the late 19th century, Moro invasions from the south were quite uncommon already. According to the Augustinian historian Pedro Galende, OSA, Escondrillas designed the church in such a way since there was no other church in the towns of the district with such a design.

Read more about the church here.

The original main entrance to the residence as one enters through Binakayan Street.

The owners of Ho Tong Hardware in Parian, Cebu where the Jesuit House of 1730 is located have started to convert the house into a museum. Although the hardware store and warehouse has not yet totally evacuated from the site, plans have already been made to relocate it to another location. An architect is also currently supervising the restoration works. The interiors of the house itself have been furnished with antique objects and furnishings in a bid to bring back the “old look” of the interiors. Continue Reading »

The church of Carcar, situated on an elevated plain with a commanding view of the town, is one of the few well-built stone churches in Cebu. The harmonious design and the careful layout of the church itself are obviously the works of a lettered architect or planner.

Dedicated to St. Catherine of Alexandria, a legendary 4th century scholar and martyr, the church was built by the Augustinians between 1860-1875 and features various influences including Islamic and Graeco-Roman. Islamic influences are evident in the massive recessed arch above the main entrance and the openings or the windows of the twin belfries while Graeco-Roman traces can best be appreciated at the main altar reredo which features Greek columns, a Roman arch and a gabled pediment. Continue Reading »

This blog will feature some of the remaining historical retablos in Cebu and will run for several weeks.

One of the most sought after sight when entering a Spanish-colonial church in any location in our country is the elaborately carved retablo which serves as a backdrop for an altar. The retablo usually has niches that contain statues of saints and is richly decorated with carvings of different motifs. It captivates the eyes of anyone entering the church from the main door and such may have contributed to the speeding up of the conversion of the natives. I myself have been fascinated with these old retablos that I can no longer count the number of times that I keep coming back to a particular church just to gaze at it. I look at them not on the religious side but as wonderful works of art bearing in mind that these are excellent products of Filipino craftsmanship.

Here in Cebu, some of the old churches that still have retablos are becoming popular sights for tourists and heritage buffs. Unfortunately though there are only a few left since some have been torn down while others were “deliberately removed” and “transferred” elsewhere to become an addition to a collection. Some were also destroyed during the last world war.

Due to my fascination to it, I have decided to dedicate the next few weeks to featuring some of the remaining historical retablos in Cebu. The criteria that I have set is that they must date back to the Spanish colonial era with the exception of the new retablos that were installed at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral in time for the 75th anniversary of the Archdiocese of Cebu.

The deliberate destruction of our beautiful retablos must stop. I’m hoping that by undertaking this feature I will be able to educate Filipinos with regards to these precious works of art in wood.