#catholic monastery

Portal Sul da igreja de S. Pedro de Rates | South portal of the church of St. Peter of Rates (Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal)

The portal on the south side façade features a double archivolt, colonnettes with historiated capitals, and, in the tympanum, a bas-relief of the Agnus Dei.

Mosteiro de São Martinho de Tibães | Monastery of Saint Martin of Tibães (Braga, Portugal)

The Church of the monastery (1628-1661) was built on the site of an old Romanesque church. Its plan in the shape of a Latin cross features a single nave with a series of chapels on the sides, as well as two altars at each end of the transept. The Sacristy (1680-1683), contrary to what's common, is separated from the Church by a small atrium. The High Choir (1665-1668), is surronded by richly decorated with paintings and reliefs of Benedictine monks and of the saint himself. The chambers of the Abbot is a very spacious and ostentatious place, that includes paintings, pictures, crockery, silverware, linen curtains, and woolen carpets.

Part II

i) Entry of the church with view to the high altar, conceived in a mannerist style and also decorated with other styles (baroque, rococo, and neoclassical).

ii) High Choir built in a mannerist style, composed of of two rows of wooden seats.

iii) Chapel in the Chambers of the Abbot General, adorned with paintings about the birth and childhood of Jesus, executed by the friar José da Apresentação.

Mosteiro de St. Maria de Flor da Rosa | Monastery of St. Mary of Flower of the Rose (Portalegre, Portugal)

Considered the most important example of a fortified monastery on the Iberian Peninsula, it's origin is told by a legend of a knight who, finding himself at death's door, receives a visit from his love who offers him a rose to help him recover. It's said that, by virtue of this offering, it is the lady who dies and the knight could do nothing more than name this monastery in honor of her…

Well, altogether it is a very touching story, history tell us that the monastery was built in 1356 by order of D. Álvaro Gonçalves Pereira, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, who decided to transfer the Portuguese headquarters of the order to that location. He's also known for being the father of Saint Constable, D. Nuno Álvares Pereira, whom, according to the myths, was born in the monastery.

Mosteiro de Santa Cruz | Monastery of the Holy Cross (Coimbra, Portugal)

The sacristy was built around 1622 and has mannerist architecture with a vaulted ceiling. It houses several decorative objects dating from the 17th and 18th centuries, namely, images with the figures of a crucified Jesus, Our Lady, St. John the Evangelist, St. Gudula and St. Gertrude. Right next, a choir lectern surrounded by manueline-style choir stalls (c. 1513), carved in gold, and illustrated with episodes about the Portuguese maritime exploration era. As for the Sanctuary, it's a chapel built around the 18th century in the shape of an ellipse in Baroque style and Rococo decoration, where relics of the Franciscan martyrs of Morocco and of Saint Theotonius of Coimbra, are gathered. Finally, inside the Chapter Room there's a Mannerist-style Chapel dedicated to Saint Theotonius, built in 1588 to house the tomb of the saint.

Part III

i) Chapel in a Baroque and Rococo style decoration, named Sanctuary.

ii) Choir lectern surrounded by the choir stalls.

iii) Sacristy with the door to the Museum of Sacred Art on the right.