English
Church of Our Lady of the Rosary
Jaraguá, Goiás, Brazil
Religious Architecture
Located in a peripheral region in relation to the historic centre, the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary was built in 1776, according to Romancheli. It is a black brotherhood church and the only 18th-century church to have survived the march of progress that destroyed a great part of Jaraguá’s historical heritage. The building has different features in its architecture which give it its own characteristic style. The simplicity of its volumes denounces the layout of its interior. The smallest volume, the sacristy, is particularly noteworthy. It stands on the left-hand side and is responsible for the church’s asymmetry and for the small buttress that serves as a structural support. The façade facing the forecourt has a central door that is reached by some steps and is surmounted by two small arches with mortar dripstones that are in turn surmounted by fanlights. The choir is illuminated by two simple windows with curved arches. The bell tower is aligned with the external entrance to the sacristy and has an independent wooden structure. The interior has two fine altars. The side altarpiece is much more intricate carved than the one in the chancel. Only the chancel has a wooden ceiling, which is polychrome with a large medallion illustrated with the figure of the Virgin holding the Child Jesus and accompanied by angels, Saint Dominic and Saint Catherine. The church is protected by both federal and state legislation. It was the object of several restoration interventions in the early years of this century under the auspices of IPHAN and the Municipal Prefecture.