CONTACT ME

Thursday, 19 January 2023

AN EURASIAN FUNERARY MONUMENT IN THE COURTYARD OF THE 'CHURCH OF OUR LADY OF LIFE', MATTANCHERRY

 

The yellow arrowhead marks the position of the funerary monument.

This is another church of Portuguese origin in Cochin area where a British (or Anglo-Indian?) funerary monument is still preserved. The church located in Mattancherry near the 'Jew Town' is called the Church of Our Lady of Life [Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Vida (Portuguese) or 'Jeevamatha Palli'  (Malayalam)]. Its fame is also associated with the 'Coonan Cross Oath' or the 'Oath of Bent Cross' taken on 3 January 1653 in Mattancherry by the St Thomas Christians, a pledge that they will no longer obey the Latin Archbishop or any other Jesuits, nor accept the Portuguese dominance. 

A brief history of the 'Church of Our Lady of Life', Mattancherry-the official version:
i) The first church in Mattancherry was established c. 800 AD in the name of Virgin Mary, but was also known as Thoma Palli (St Thomas Church) or Irumesa Palli (Twin Altar Church)

ii) The 'Chapel of Holy Cross' (the modern Coonan Cross Catholic Church) was established by the Portuguese in 1550

iii) The Portuguese built a new church (2nd) replacing the St Thomas church and dedicated it to 'Our Lady of Life' (Nossa Senhora da Vida) in 1557

iv) After the Dutch destroyed the church in 1663, a 3rd was built on the same site and was blessed on 10 August, 1769 by the Bishop of Cochin, Clemente José Colaço Leitão 

v) When the 3rd church was burnt down by the Travancore insurgents (during Vettikola Pada) in December 1808, a 4th one was built and consecrated in the current location on 22 June, 1911 by the Bishop of Cochin José Bento Martins Ribeiro, and a cemetery was established at the old site 

vi) The 4th church was renovated and consecrated on 30 November, 2017 by the Bishop of Cochin Joseph Kariyil, which is the present-day worshiping place known as Jeevamatha Palli (Church of Our Lady of Life).

 

A few images of the 'Church of Our Lady of Life', Mattancherry captured under different time points

The non-Catholic communities, especially the Syrian Orthodox have a different interpretation of the Coonan (Bent) Cross Oath of 1653-the historic event that changed the course of Christianity in Kerala. Today, two sites are shown connected to the famous oath, the Chapel of Holy Cross/Braanthan Kuriachan Palli (Catholic) and the St. George Orthodox Coonan Kurishu Old Syrian Church (Syrian Orthodox), both  claim that the fateful event took place in their soil.

 The Chapel of Bent Holy Cross/Coonan Cross (Catholic)

St. George Orthodox Coonan Kurishu Old Syrian Church (Syrian Orthodox)

GRAVE MONUMENT OF JOHN JAMES STEVENAGE  (d. 11 AUGUST, 1854).

In front of the Jeevamatha church, before the main eastern entrance, are two funerary monuments. The one closer to the front door is for the former Vicar of the church, Fr. Augustine Menezes Kiliyara (Vicar from 26-01-1916 to 25-04-1932), who died at the age of 63. The other gravestone is certainly older as evident from its appearance. This interesting epitaph has engravings in three different languages, viz. English, Malayalam and Portuguese. There is a skull motif on the top flanked by a writing, and below this symbol is the main text in English consisting of 12 lines. The English script is followed by a 2-lined Malayalam and 3-lined Portuguese verses. The epitaph is broken and the inscriptions are worn off, and as a consequence, the readings are difficult to decipher. However, I could figure out a few words like, 'To the Memory of' in the beginning and 'Cornelia' and ‘Married’ in the middle of the epitaph. The first name of the deceased (3rd line) appear vaguely as John, but the rest is not clear.  

Position of the Tombstones (1-John James Stevenage and 2- Fr. Augustine Menezes Kiliyara) in the Courtyard

 The Tombstone of  Fr. Augustine Menezes Kiliyara

I found a quote from Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 161) that T. W. Venn has mentioned 5 burials in the forecourt of the church in 1947. The authors however could not trace the gravestones during their survey. To my surprise, Fr. Menezes Kiliyara's (d. 1932) name is in the list, so my hunch was that tombstone of our concern could be one of the remaining graves cited. This is where it’s getting interesting, there is a 'John' in the list, and the epitaph is for "Stevenage, John James, son of John Stevenage & Susannah, died 1857, age 58" (Roberts and Chekkutty, 2017, p. 161). Interestingly, Venn in his other work, 'Cochin-Malabar. Palms and Pageants' (1950, p. 206), clearly identifies the tombstone in the forecourt of Muttancherry (Mattancherry) church belonging to John James Stevenage an Eurasian clerk dated 1857, and adds that he was born at Tellicherry in 1803 to Mrs. Perugina Stevenage who died at Mangalore in 1810. I tried to align the words 'John James Stevenage' with the letters in the corresponding position of the epitaph, and the match was perfect! This was possible despite the letters appeared faint and blurry. Now that the biggest hurdle is over, that is the identification of the deceased was done, the next phase was to find about 'John James' and his background. 

Upon searching for other ‘Stevenages’, I found one in the St Thomas Church Cemetery at Quilon (Kollam). The grave belongs to  John James' mother "Stevenage, Susanna widow of M. A. Sgt. John Stevenage, died 2 December 1834, age 90" (Roberts and Chekkutty, 2017, p. 193). However, his father’s name is absent, so he must be buried outside Kerala. What about his wife? In the epitaph, after Cornelia, the next name appears like Guzehlar or Guzhlar, so she could be from the famous ship merchant Gueizelar family of Vypin. With these details and speculations, I managed to decipher the epitaph to some good extend, but gaps were still there. Eventually, some other words became clear, such as ‘Madras’, ‘T..cherry’ (Tellicherry or Thangacherry) etc.,  but I couldn't put them in context. More importantly, the dates and numbers remained still illegible, even though, you could make some educated guesses. This was the situation until I came across excerpts of Patrick Hugh Stevenage’s work, ‘A Railway Family in India Five Generations of the Stevenages’ (2001), which became very helpful in this study. Patrick has not only come up with an elaborate sketch of John James Stevenagen’s life but also a detailed background of this Anglo-Indian family. His (John James Stevenagen) baptism certificate, his last Will and Testament and the inscription on his tomb all were used to reconstruct the story. He has provided the complete epitaph and here is how it reads.

The full inscription on the epitaph:

SIN IS- [SKULL EMBLEM] -THE CAUSE OF DEATH 

TO
THE MEMORY
OF
JOHN JAMES STEVENAGE
BORN AT TELLICHERRY
BAPTISED AT MADRAS
MARRIED FRANCES
CORNELIA GUZHLAR
LIVED AND DIED AT COCHIN
THE 11 DAY OF AUGUST
A.D. 1854 AGED 55 YEARS
MAY HE REST IN PEACE

(In Malayalam)
CHRISTIAN PASSING THROUGH
PRAY FOR MERCY TO THE ALMIGHTY

(In Portuguese)
HOMOENS CATHOLICOS
PECO ENCARACIDAMENTE DEROGAR
A DEOS PARA SALVACO DESTE POBRE ALMA
(Catholic People I Dearly Ask to God for the Salvation of this Poor Soul) 

The Tombstone of John James Stevenage

Enlarged views of the tombstone 

 A brief history and family background of John James Stevenage. 

The Stevenages' Indian connection begins with John Stevenage, who was born in 1759 in Surrey, England. He was enlisted as a private in the Madras European Regiment of the East India Company in 25th March 1778 and was sent to India, where his family remained for two hundred years. John Stevenage married Susanna and their youngest son, John James Stevenage was born on May, 1799, not long before he died in a battle fought against Tipu Sultan. The record of baptism states that John James, aged 5 months, the son of Sergeant John Stevenage and Susanna, was baptized at Vepery (a suburb of Madras/Chennai) on 16th October 1799. Susanna and her son moved from Madras to Cochin. John James' father was buried in the cemetery of St Mary’s, Fort St George, Madras, the tombstone states simply: 'John Stevenage, Soldier, buried 8th April 1799'; whereas his mother's burial monument at Kollam reads: 'Quilon, 2nd December 1834 - Susannah, relict of Serjeant John Stevenage, Madras Artillery aged about 90 years was buried by me G. Graeme Chaplain, Archdeaconry of Madras'. I am not sure if both the funerary monuments have survived, but John James must be having an Anglo-Indian heritage if Susannah his mother is native by birth.

John James married Frances Cornelia Guzhlar, who belonged to the family of Manuel Gyselaar, his son Poney Guizelaar and his grandson Cornelius Guizelaar-all wealthy successful shipbuilders at Cochin. Together John James and Cornelia Guzhlar had three sons (Cornelio Augustus Stevenage, Charles Stevenage and Peter Alcantra Stevenage), and two daughters (Adelia Justina Roza and Leticia Maria Brown), all survived to adulthood and well settled. According to gravestone in Mattancherry, John James was born in Tellicherry (about a month after the death of his father), baptised at Madras, and lived and died at Cochin on 11th August, 1854. He had acquired a more than modest fortune in his lifetime. He maintained residences at Mattancherry and Cochin, owned several properties in Ernakulam, and was very active in religious matters of the church both at Verapoly (Varappuzha) and Mattancherry.

(Compiled essentially from the information provided by Patrick Hugh Stevenage in his book, ‘A Railway Family in India Five Generations of the Stevenages’, 2001).

Posted by CONTACT ME (Dr. Laju Paul K.) at 00:01

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

INTRODUCTION

The monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam arrived India much before they reached the West. For instance, it is widely believed that Christianity reached the subcontinent only after Portuguese, the first European colonists arrived India in the 15th century. However, long before Christianity reached many parts of Europe, it came to India. According to strong, continuous and unanimous traditions among the ancient Syrian Christians of Kerala, Christianity was introduced to India by St: Thomas, the Apostle of Jesus Christ in 52 AD, who established seven churches in Kerala. Contrary to popular belief that Islam came to India through the 11th century Muslim invasions in the northern parts of the country, it first arrived Kerala via the Arab merchants from 7th century onwards at the earliest. Similarly, Judaism the oldest continuously practiced monotheistic religion has an Indian presence from very early times. If traditional accounts are to be accepted,India had a Jewish colony from the time of King Solomon (10th century BC)! Most importantly, all the three religions trace their arrival in India to the Malabar region of Southern India which is currently the modern State of Kerala. Since ancient times Kerala has been the center of the Indian spice trade where Greeks, Romans, Jews, Arabs and Chinese came for grabbing their part of share. To be specific, the first Jewish, Christian and Islamic settlements of India claim their origin to a place called Cranganore (modern Kodungallur) in Kerala.

Much has been written on Indian Jews, their unique culture and traditions. Among the three major Jewish communities in India, the “Kerala Jews” popularly known as“Cochin Jews” are the most ancient followed by the “Bene Israel” of Maharashtra and the “Baghdadi Jews” of West Bengal. Recently two more communities have claimed Jewish ancestry viz. “Bene Menasheh” (1970s) from North East India and “Bene Ephraim or Telugu Jews” (1980s) from Andhra Pradesh. A small population of Jews had migrated to India during the Mughal, Portuguese, Dutch, French and British rule as well. Perhaps the Jewish refugees from Hitler’s Anti-Semitic Europe were the last Jews to arrive India. In other words, Jews weren’t a single emigration to India. At different times they arrived and settled peacefully in India where they never experienced any anti-Semitism from the native Indian community. Although Jews supposedly reached Kerala as early as 1st century AD, there were many different waves of emigrations later as well. Gradually, Jews of Kerala became organized into three distinct groups, but the different communities interacted very less among themselves. 1) Malabari Jews: the largest and most ancient group considered to have arrived in India as merchants during the period of King Solomon (1000 BC). 2). ‘Paradesi’ (foreigner) Jews: the second largest and recent group (from 16th century onwards) who migrated mainly from Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Spain and Germany. 3). ‘Meshuhararim’ (released): the smallest group believed to be the slaves held by both Malabari and Paradesi communities who were converted to Judaism and later on released from their status as slaves. The Malabari Jews were called the ‘Black Jews’, the Meshuhararim-the ‘Brown Jews’ and the ‘Paradesi’-the ‘White Jews’-terms considered derogatory and racist today. The arguments on who came first and who are more pure were often fought vehemently and each sect defended their claims. The Jewish population of Kerala numbered 2,400 at the height of their “mass” emigration to Israel in 1954. Today (2011), less than 40 Jews remain in Kerala-9 Paradesi Jews comprising of 6 women and 3 men; and less than 30 Malabari Jews.

In a strong caste-based Indian society, fair skinned Paradesi Jews managed to win a privileged position although they were a minority and newly arrived. Their European background, influence and wealth managed to push the majority of relatively poor Malabar Jews into an inferior position in colonial India. Unfortunately, even today for many in the west and to a great extent in India too, the existence of Kerala’s ancient Malabari Jewish community and their heritage is far unknown. The famous Paradesi Synagogue in Cochin is perhaps the only monument that comes into the mind of many as far as Judaism in Kerala is concerned. Often mistakenly acclaimed to be the oldest (built 1568) synagogue in British Commonwealth, the Paradesi Synagogue however, is the only functional one in Kerala today (2011). Did the Jewish community of Kerala leave anything more than this famed synagogue? The answer is a big yes. Judaism in Kerala is not only about the Paradesi Jews of Cochin and their synagogue in Mattanchery. In fact, the Malabari Jews have seven synagogues and six cemeteries, and several aretfacts and monuments that are also part of Kerala’s rich Jewish heritage! This does not include the few existing Jewish homes and the many earlier Jewish residences converted into non-Jewish owned business buildings and private villas.

This blog will be an attempt to help people both inside and outside India to locate and learn about the known Jewish monuments of Kerala, that include synagogues, cemeteries and former Jewish residences. It will be equally pictorial and textual in format. One of the objectives of this blog is to help people in identifying all known Jewish monuments of Kerala through maps and photographs. Their left out synagogues and cemeteries are the physical landmarks that still stand in testimony to the vibrant and glorious heritage of Jews who claim at least 2000 years of strong and continuous bond with India. The big question is about the accessibility and identification of these monuments. Some of the cemeteries for example are so overgrown with weeds and turned into garbage dumping yards that even the locals have no clue about their existence. Most of the sites have no sign boards or maps available to pin point their exact location. The information from internet and other sources are also limited or at times misinformed when locating the monuments are concerned. I will try to get as many photographs as needed to help people understand these monuments and the blog will not be confined to the heritage of Paradesi Jews alone. For those synagogues that are disputed properties or lie in ruined state and are not accessible for the public I will only add photographs of the exterior. Some of the original Jewish artifacts from Kerala are preserved in Israel and what left here are the duplicates. In such cases, I will trace and append online links having the original photographs. Regarding the dates associated with the history of ‘Kerala Jews’, I have tried to incorporate the most popular views and need not always be the scholarly accepted ones. I shall be much glad if any one can contribute or provide details of additional monuments, sites or artifacts you think can be classified as part of Jewish heritage of Kerala.

Being also a photoblog, I will be concentrating more on the photographs taken from various Jewish monuments in Kerala. Not many sites are available online that go deep into the structural and historic details of these heritage units with photographs. However, we are lucky to have a few very enlightening resources. The“Friends of Kerala Synagogues 2011”(Prof. Jay A. Waronker, USA; Prof. Shalva Weil, Israel; Marian Scheuer Sofaer, USA; Isaac Sam, India and Tirza Muttath Lavi, Israel) maintain an excellent site on the synagogues of Kerala. I strongly recommend anyone interested in ‘Jewish synagogues of Kerala’ to go through their highly informative links. Whenever, I refer to their site, it will be acknowledged as ‘www.cochinsyn.com’. The other very important site I recommend is the beautiful photo collection by Jono David in his ‘Ha Chayim Ha Yehudim Jewish Photo Library’. He has photographs from many Jewish monuments of India. Although he has got wrong one of the synagogues (Mattancherry Kadavumbagam Synagogue) the site has largely helped me to identify the Jewish cemeteries in Kerala.

JEWISH MONUMENTS & ARTIFACTS OF KERALA

The most important Jewish heritage structures in Kerala are the synagogues (Juda Palli in Malayalam), cemeteries and residences.

A. Synagogues

Today, there are 35 synagogues in India and 7 of them are in Kerala. The architectural style of Kerala synagogues differs from those in the west. These synagogues are strongly influenced from earlier Hindu religious buildings on its design and construction. They are characterized by high slope roofs, thick laterite-stoned walls, large windows and doors, balcony and wood-carved ceilings. A Kerala synagogue consists of a ‘Gate House’ at the entrance that leads through a Breezeway to the Synagogue Complex. The synagogue complex is made of a fully enclosed Azara or Anteroom and a double-storeyed sanctuary-the main prayer hall. Inside a typical double-storeyed sanctuary of a ‘Kerala Synagogue’ are:

1) A Tebah/Bimah: Located at the center of the sanctuary, Tebah is usually an elevated wooden platform or pulpit from which Torah, the holy book of Jews is read. 2) A Heichal (Ark): Represents the altar. It is a chest or cupboard in the synagogue where the Torah scrolls are kept. It is usually carved intricately and painted/gilded with teak wood. Unlike in the European Synagogues, where the ark is placed on the eastern wall, the synagogues in Kerala have the arks on the western wall facing Jerusalem. 3) A Balcony/Second Tebah: It is unique to the synagogues of Kerala. The balcony has two portions one for men and the other for ladies. Women’s seating area is placed directly above the azara. 4) A Staircase: Leads to the balcony and is generally spiral in shape and made of wood. At times there are two staircases, one for men from the main hall inside the synagogue and the other for the ladies from a staircase room outside the synagogue; 5) A Jewish School: Is actually a classroom for Jewish children usually located behind the women’s section on the first floor.

B. Cemeteries

Resting place of ancestors means a lot to the Jewish community. Sometimes they even carried tombstones from their old settlements while migrating to a newer place. The oldest Jewish tomb in India (dated 1269 AD) preserved in front of Chendamangalam synagogue is one such transferred from Kodungallur. Unlike Christian tombs in Kerala with Malayalam and English engravings, the Jewish graves have mostly Hebrew inscriptions. The Jewish year can be converted into modern Gregorian date if one can read the Hebrew letters. ‘Reading Hebrew Tombstones’ is an interesting site to read the Jewish tombs.

C. Jewish Residences

Today, most of the early Jewish homes sold to non-Jews are substantially modified or refurbished. However, there are a few features that still make them identifiable. Sometimes you can trace Jewish symbols like Menorah (candlestick) and Magen David (Star of David) on the walls, windows and roof tops. For example, a few residences in Mattancherry still maintain the Star of David (Magen David) despite being converted into shops or warehouses. The best way to locate the home of a residing Jew is to look for the Mezuzah on the door post. Nailed to the doorpost of a Jewish home, Mezuzah is a small container made of wood, plastic or metal having a piece of parchment with the most important words from the Jewish Holy Book, Torah. It is customary among religious Jews to touch the mezuzah on entering or leaving the home. A few homes in the Synagogue Lane of Mattancherry with mezuzah are the residences of the remaining 9 Paradesi Jews.

The Jewish monuments and artifacts I will be discussing in this blog are:

I Synagogues

1. Pardesi Synagogue, Mattancherry (1568)

2. Kadavumbagam Synagogue, Mattancherry (1130 or 1539)

3. Thekkumbagam Synagogue, Mattancherry (1647, only the building site known)

4. Kadavumbagam Synagogue, Ernakulam (1200)

5. Thekkumbagam Synagogue, Ernakulam (1200 or 1580))

6. Paravur Synagogue (750 or 1164 or 1616)

7. Mala Synagogue (1400 or 1597)

8. Chendamangalam Synagogue (1420 or 1614)

(The various speculated dates of establishment in parenthesis are taken from www.cochinsyn.com, coutesy Prof. Jay A. Waronker)

II Cemeteries

1. Pardesi Jewish Cemetery, Mattancherry

2. Malabari Jewish Cemetery, Mattancherry

3. Old Jewish Cemetery, Ernakulam

4. New Jewish Cemetery, Ernakulam

5. Paravur Jewish Cemetery

6. Mala Jewish Cemetery

7. Chendamangalam Jewish Cemetery

III Jew Streets

1. Jew Street Mattancherry (Jewish residences with Mezuzah and Magen David)

2. Jew Steet, Ernakulam (today all shops in non-Jewish hands)

3. Jew Street, Paravur (Twin Pillars)

4. Jew Street, Mala (Gate House and Breezeway of synagogue turned into shops)

5. Jew Street, Chendamangalam (used to be a Jewish Market or Judakambolam)

6. Jew Street, Calicut (identified in July 2011 as Jootha (Jew) Bazar)

IV Other Monuments & Artifacts

1. Tomb of Sarah (1269 AD), Chendamangalam

2. Kochangadi Synagogue Corner-stone, Mattancherry

3. Jewish Children’s Play Ground, Mattancherry

4. Clock-Tower, Mattancherry

5. Sarah Cohen’s Embroidery Shop, Mattancherry

6. Jew Hill/Judakunnu/Jewish Bazar, Palayur

7. Jew Tank/Judakkulam, Madayi

8. Koder House, Fort Kochi

9. Grand Residencia, Fort Kochi

10. Jewish Summer Resorts, Aluva

11. Jewish Copper Plates, Mattancherry

12. Syrian Copper Plates, Kollam

13. Torah Finial, Palayur

V Lost Jewish Colonies

1. Kodungallur (Thrissur)

2. Palayur (Thrissur)

3. Pullut (Thrissur)

4. Kunnamkulam (Thrissur)

5. Saudhi (Ernakulam)

6. Tir-tur (Ernakulam)

7. Fort Kochi (Ernakulam)

8. Chaliyam (Kozhikode)

5. Pantalayani Kollam (Kozhikode)

9. Thekkepuram (Kozhikkode)

10. Muttam (Alappuzha)

11. Kayamkulam (Alappuzha)

12. Dharmadom (Kannur)

13. Madayi (Kannur)

14. Quilon (Kollam)

15. Pathirikunnu, Krishnagiri (Waynad)

16. Anchuthengu (Thiruvananthapuram)