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Locally known as Santana, St. Anne Church Goa stands among the few renowned churches of the world and is distinguished for its architectural excellence. It is an ideal representation of a perfect blend of European architectural style. The church is one of the refined examples of baroque architecture.
The cathedral is erected on the banks of the river Siridao, which happens to be in a small Goan village Talaulim. The cathedral was rebuilt by Mons Francisco do Rego employing his own resources and with the assistance of some villagers. However, he could not complete the structure and for that reason Fr Antonio Francisco da Cunha accomplished his work and completed the construction in 1965. The main altar is consecrated to St Anne – the Mother of Mary. The church is nestled in the majestic verdant hills of Santana and was honored with a status of a “national monument” during the Portuguese era by the Government Portario No. 1360 of 31/3/31.
The church used to be inlaid with priceless diamonds, like that of in the churches such as Bom Jesus Basilica, the Se Cathedral, the Church of St. Francis of Assisi, the Convent of Santa Monica and the Church of St. Cajetan.
According to the legends that has been narrated by Fr F de Souza in his Oriente Conquistado, in the year 1577, in Tiswadi, some devotees bought the site named as Quinta de Sant Ana. The very site used to be visited by the students of the Colegio de S Paulo to spend their leisure hours. There was a priest who used to reside in its close proximity and decided to construct a hermitage but was in vain to consecrate the hermitage for any known saint. However one day, a local resident named Bartalomeu Marchon, told him that he saw a lady coming down the hill, claiming the very hermitage to be her residence. Thereafter, on hearing this, an old Brahmin lady said that even she has seen the same old lady in her dreams who asked her to get up from the bed, which resulted in a miraculous recovery. She further said that the lady called herself St. Anne. Thus it was a unanimous decision that the name of the church would be St. Anne Church.
The feast of St. Anne happens to be on July 26th, which is celebrated throughout Goa with grandeur. Along with that, the Church of St Anne at Talaulim also celebrates Touceachem Fest or the Cucumber Feast.
The church has also been embraced with the title of “National Monument” by the Archaeological Survey of India.