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Virtual Guidebook to Monterey, Big Sur and the Central Coast
Carmel Mission (Mission San Carlos Borromeo)
Carmel California

Carmel Mission is close to the heart of California sentimentalists, with its mellow stone, quiet courtyards, and historic associations. It is located on a south-facing slope above Carmel Bay. After secularization of the missions it fell into picturesque ruin, but has been painstakingly restored.

The mission was founded by Father Serra in 1770 in Monterey, but moved over the hill to Carmel the next year. Serra came back here to die in 1784 and was buried in a redwood coffin. In 1943 and again in 1987 his body was exhumed and reinterred, part of a process to confirm the identity of the remains in case he is elevated to sainthood.


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The entry courtyard at Carmel Mission

(December 13, 2005)

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The historic cemetery at Carmel Mission

(December 13, 2005)

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The meditation garden at Carmel Mission

(December 13, 2005)

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Next to the tower at Carmel Mission

(December 13, 2005)

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In the church at Carmel Mission

(December 13, 2005)

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Next to the altar in the Carmel Mission basilica

(December 13, 2005)

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The Serra Chapel and effigy at Carmel Mission

(December 13, 2005)

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Next Locality: Mission Ranch in Carmel