The Drowning Church of Shettihalli
Every monsoon, a ruined Gothic church in Karnataka slowly sinks beneath the water. Every summer, it rises again.
What was reported
The Rosary Church at Shettihalli, near Hassan in Karnataka, was built by French missionaries in the 1860s in the Gothic style, with tall pointed arches. In 1960, the Hemavathi dam was built downstream, and the church and village were abandoned as the land was flooded for the reservoir.
Each year, as the monsoon fills the reservoir, the church disappears under the water, sometimes all but its spires. In the dry months, from about December to May, the water drops and the roofless ruin stands again on the cracked lake bed.
Explanations offered
It is a simple effect of the reservoir's water level rising and falling with the seasons. The ruin has become a popular, eerily beautiful place to visit, and a favourite of photographers.
- When
- Built in the 1860s; submerged since 1960
- Where
- Shettihalli, Hassan district, Karnataka, India
- Witnesses
- Villagers and visitors
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.