Fontainhas (or Bairro das Fontainhas, in
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
) is an old Latin
Quarter A quarter is one-fourth, , 25% or 0.25.
Quarter or quarters may refer to:
Places
* Quarter (urban subdivision), a section or area, usually of a town
Placenames
* Quarter, South Lanarkshire, a settlement in Scotland
* Le Quartier, a settlement ...
in
Panjim
Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...
, capital city of the
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
of
Goa
Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
, India. It maintains its Portuguese influence, particularly through its
architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
, which includes narrow and picturesque winding streets like those found in many European cities, old
villa
A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became s ...
s and buildings with projecting balconies painted in the traditional tones of pale yellow, green, or blue, and roofs made of red coloured tiles. Fontainhas' heritage ambience represents the traditional Portuguese influence in the area.
Location
Fontainhas is the oldest Latin quarter of Panjim, and is similar to a Mediterranean city. Located at the foot of the
Altinho
Altinho ('' pt, High'') is a hill neighbourhood of Panaji, the state capital of India's smallest state Goa.
In the past it has been considered an elite residential colony, with the State's chief minister's residence and the Archbishop's palace ...
Hills, it is bounded on the west by the hills with springs from which its name derives. (''Fontainhas'' is Portuguese for "little fountain".) On the east side, it is bounded by an ancient creek known as the Ourem Creek. It was built on reclaimed land.
[
]
History
In the late eighteenth century, a Goan expatriate named António João de Sequeira (nicknamed Mossmikar), who had made his wealth while working in Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
, established Fontainhas.[ The name came from a spring at the foot of the hill which began to sprout around 1770. It is patterned along the lines of Lisbon's ''Bairro Alto.''
In 1844, a government administrator, who had restored a some order in Goa, directed that even the people of the lower strata of society should appear properly dressed in public. He built an elegant street with a parapet called the ''Rua Nova d’Ouremsea'' on the seaward side of the Fontainhas Bairro (Quarter). In the same area, he also created the Phenis fountain, with a façade and porch.
The Fontainhas had a high population density. The rich lived on Panjim hill in large bungalows, while the less affluent lived at the foot and the east of the hill, hemmed in between the hill and the small tidal creek, which remains dry and emits a foul smell during the low flow season.
]William Dalrymple William Dalrymple may refer to:
* William Dalrymple (1678–1744), Scottish Member of Parliament
* William Dalrymple (moderator) (1723–1814), Scottish minister and religious writer
* William Dalrymple (British Army officer) (1736–1807), Scott ...
calls Fontainhas a "small chunk of Portugal washed up on the shores of the Indian Ocean". It is the only area in Goa where Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
is still the main spoken language.
Features
The old houses built in the 18th and 19th centuries in the Portuguese architectural style remain in their original colourful elegance with roofs made of red tiles and houses painted in pale yellow, green or blue colours. The Fundacão Orienté, a Portuguese public organization involved in the task of restoration of heritage buildings in Goa is also located in this quarter of Panjim.Fundacão Orienté
/ref> Fonte Phoenix, a well from a natural spring at one of the quarter's houses, has been refurbished.[ Many art galleries, which also house exotic cafes, are located here.][
''La douceur méditerranéenne'' (a Mediterranean mildness) can be sighted in the lanes.
While most aristocrats' mansions have been destroyed to make way for modern buildings, some old houses of erstwhile rich Indo-Portuguese people are still found here. Windows and balconies of some of the houses face the back lanes of the Fontainhas.
The houses and the lanes are kept very clean. During ]Portuguese rule
The Portuguese Empire ( pt, Império Português), also known as the Portuguese Overseas (''Ultramar Português'') or the Portuguese Colonial Empire (''Império Colonial Português''), was composed of the overseas Colonialism, colonies, Factory ...
, every urban resident was mandated by law to paint his house every year after the monsoons
A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...
; this practice is still continued as a tradition.
A popular theme walk in the Fontainhas focuses on the architectural elegance of the atmospheric heritage area.
Chapel of St Sebastian
The Chapel of St Sebastian, erected in 1818, is located at the southern end of the Fontainhas. It was traditionally the locale for the annual street festival of the Feast of Our Lady of Livrament. An old well exists in its precincts. The chapel is well preserved and has a very large crucifix
A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...
, which was once fixed at the Palace of the Inquisition in Old Goa
Old Goa ( Konkani: ; pt, Velha Goa, translation='Old Goa') is a historical site and city situated on the southern banks of the River Mandovi, within the Tiswadi ''taluka'' (''Ilhas'') of North Goa district, in the Indian state of Goa.
The ci ...
; earlier, it was in the palace of Adil Shah
Ali-qoli Khan ( fa, علیقلیخان), commonly known by his regnal title Adel Shah (also spelled Adil; , "the Just King") was the second shah of Afsharid Iran, ruling from 1747 to 1748. He was the nephew and successor of Nader Shah (), th ...
but later moved to this chapel when the Viceroy moved out to Cabo. A striking feature of the crucifix is the image of Christ created over it with eyes open, as if to create fear among the people of the interrogations of the Inquisitors. The chapel also houses an image of the Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
, two veneered wooden chests, and three intricately-carved altarpieces relocated from a church in Diu.[
]
Art festival
Every year, for one week, the historic houses in Fontainhas are turned into art galleries, with residents displaying their artworks an Goan heritage, unique architectural features of their balconies, and furnishings in their dining halls.
The Fontainhas festival is an art and culture festival held in the month of February in Goa. The Fontainhas festival is an attempt to create awareness about Goan heritage among younger generations and in turn aiming to preserve the distinct cultural scene prevalent in Goa. The Goan heritage of music, dance and art is closely connected to its Portuguese counterpart and is well displayed at this festival. Singers and dancers from across the world come here to perform on this occasion. Every day there are musical and dance events. The festival provides an opportunity for the artists to expand their network.
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*{{cite book, last= Survey , first=India. Marine , title=General Report of the Operations of the Marine Survey of India, url=https://archive.org/details/generalreporton00survgoog, page
21
, year=1881, publisher=Government Press
Neighbourhoods in Panaji