400-year-old church declared a cultural treasure in the Philippines

A 397-year-old church in Pampanga province, Philippines is declared a National Cultural Treasure.

397-year-old church to be named national cultural treasure
Philstar.com, 09 August 2011

Another church in this province will be officially declared a national cultural treasure (NCT).

Local officials are preparing the festivities for Aug. 27, when the 397-year-old Sta. Monica parish church will be declared NCT by the National Museum, for its preserved unique centuries-old features.

It would be the second NCT in Pampanga, after the St. James church in Betis, Guagua.

Architect Owen Francis Canlas, chair of the Commission on Cultural Heritage, Restoration and Conservation (CCHRC) said the National Museum decided to make Sta. Monica Church a NCT because its façade features a unique giant retablo or altar influenced by Christian, Buddhist, Hinduist and animistic cultures.