Se Cathedral

Se Cathedral in Old Goa is the largest church in Asia, a vast Portuguese-era structure built to commemorate the 1510 conquest of Goa by Afonso de Albuquerque. Its plain, weathered exterior — one of its original two towers collapsed in the 18th century and was never rebuilt — belies an ornate gilded interior, including a famous bell known as the 'Golden Bell' for its rich tone.

Standing alongside the nearby Basilica of Bom Jesus as part of Old Goa's UNESCO-listed ensemble of churches and convents, Se Cathedral remains an active place of worship, its scale offering a striking sense of just how significant Goa was as a centre of Portuguese colonial and religious power at its peak.

Construction began in 1562 under Portuguese colonial rule and took nearly a century to complete, reflecting Goa's status at the time as the capital of Portugal's entire Asian empire, sometimes referred to as 'Golden Goa'.

In Old Goa, about 10km from Panaji.