St Francis Xavier
Goencho Saib, the patron of Goa, raising the crucifix.
About this statue
St Francis Xavier, one of the first Jesuits, landed in Goa in 1542 and carried the Gospel from there along the coast of India and on to Malacca, the Moluccas and Japan. He died in 1552 on the island of Shangchuan, at the gates of China, and his body was brought back to Goa. It rests today in the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa, and every ten years it is brought out for the Exposition, when pilgrims come from all over the world.
To Goans he is Goencho Saib, the Lord of Goa, and his feast on 3 December, after the novena at Old Goa, is the greatest feast of the Goan year. He is also the patron of the missions.
Ours shows him as Goa knows him: barefoot, in surplice and stole over the black cassock, raising the crucifix as he preached. We also make him pointing to heaven with the cross in his other hand, with his hand on his heart, or gazing at the cross in his hands.
He is made for churches, chapels and schools named after him, in Goa, along the Konkan and Kanara coast, and wherever Goans have settled, and for Jesuit houses and colleges.
Materials, sizes and delivery
- Sizes
- From 30 inches upwards, made to order. Some designs start at 4 feet, so please ask us to confirm.
- Material
- Fibreglass (FRP), sculpted and painted by hand in our studio in Mangalore.
- Colours
- Any statue can be made in any colour, for indoors or outdoors: in a natural finish (in colour) or a stone finish (one colour, such as white or marble).
- Outdoors
- For gardens and grottos we suggest a stone finish. It is easier to look after, and stays fresh for longer through sun and monsoon.
- Ordering
- Every statue is made from scratch. We give a timeline with the quotation, and orders are taken first come, first served.
- Delivery
- Collect it from the studio, or we send it by road anywhere in India. Outside India, ask us about delivery.
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