Lisbon Cathedral: history, architecture

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:55

Sé de Lisboa (also known as Lisbon's main cathedral, Santa Maria, or simply as Lisbon Cathedral) dates back to the era of the first Christian Reconquista after hundreds of years of Islamic Moorish rule. It is the most important and iconic building in the city.

History of Creation

After the liberation of the capital of Portugal in 1147, Lisbon Cathedral, according to the original plan of Afonso I, King of Portugal, was to be built in the Romanian style after the Christians took over the city. Since then, the structure of the temple has been greatly expanded and remodeled over the centuries. Inside the cathedral is dark, it has many niches. It creates a very dark and heavy mood.

The ancient cathedral of Lisbon was built by the first king of Portugal on the site of an old mosque for the city's first bishop, the English crusader Gilbert of Hastings. The author of the project of the Lisbon Cathedral is the architect Master Roberto.

Work on its construction began in 1147, the year the city was liberated. Built on the site of a Moorish main mosque, it served both as a monument to the liberation of Lisbon andfortress, in case the Moors return. Shortly after its founding, the remains of Saint Vincent of Zaragoza, the patron saint of Lisbon, were returned and placed in the cathedral. All relics are still kept in the sacristy (or treasury) of the Lisbon Cathedral.

Description

With its appearance, with two bell towers and a magnificent rose window, it resembles a medieval fortress, its interior decoration is more in line with Romanesque architecture, apart from the Gothic choir and ambulatory (a semi-circular bypass gallery around the altar).

Since the 12th century, Sophia Cathedral has been an integral part of the early history of Portugal, being a kind of witness to the baptisms, marriages and deaths of the Portuguese elite of that time. The exterior of the grand old church resembles more a fortification than a religious center, with massive walls and two imposing towers.

The only accent on the simple fortified facade of the cathedral is a large rose window (rosette) located above the main entrance; it, together with the two bell towers, is the most striking feature of the building. Much of the cathedral's architecture is Romanesque in style, although there are significant Gothic influences that can be seen in parts of the building added in the 13th century. The most notable example of the latter are the monastery and the choir. The interior of the cathedral is rather gloomy and austere, although this is partly due to the heavy damage caused by the 1755 earthquake. The exception is the main chapel, which was rebuilt after the earthquake inmore colorful neoclassical and rococo style with colored marble finishes.

Features

At the entrance, on the left, there is a baptismal font in which in 1195 St. Anthony was baptized, who was born nearby - less than 200 meters from the cathedral, down the slope on the site of the current St. Anthony's church. The first chapel on the left features a beautifully detailed nativity scene.

In the adjoining 14th-century monastery, where once there were gardens, excavations were carried out, during which the remains of the Romans and Visigoths were discovered, as well as parts of the wall of the mosque that was on this site.

The sacristy houses a treasury containing many sacred objects, the most important of which is the casket containing the remains of Saint Vincent, the official patron of Lisbon.

Interior gothic arches stretch to the ceiling, while medieval statues and ornaments fill the niches. On the back side is an ancient monastery, which was built directly above the ruined mosque and became a symbol of the liberation of the Catholics of Portugal from the North African Moors. The cathedral is a remarkable ancient complex steeped in history.

Another architectural feature of the cathedral is the rose window. This rosette was painstakingly reconstructed over the course of the 20th century from fragments of the original window that was destroyed by the powerful earthquake of 1755. The earthquake also led to the destruction of the roof, under the rubble of which hundreds of believers werewhile in the cathedral for the celebration of All Saints Day.

Visit by tourists

One of the most famous buildings in Lisbon - Lisbon Cathedral - is visited by numerous tourists. The cathedral itself (nave, transept and altar) and the abandoned monastery are open to them. The cathedral is open to the public every day from 7:00 am until the evening mass held in Portuguese at 7:00 pm. There are no entry fees at the main cathedral, but all visitors must be dressed appropriately. The monastery is open every day from 10:00 to 17:00 and the entrance fee is 2.50 euros for an adult and 1 euro for a child.

Typically, a visit to the Lisbon Cathedral takes about 15-20 minutes and another 20 minutes to visit the monastery. It itself is located on the main road that runs from Baixa to Alfama, and the nearest metro station is Rossio, but the most scenic form of public transport is the quaint yellow tram (line 28) that passes right in front of the cathedral.

Interesting facts

The word Sé in the name (Sé de Lisboa) comes from the first letters of the words Sedes Episcopalis, which means the place of the bishop. Interestingly, the first bishop of Lisbon had no roots or connections to the region, but was in fact an English crusader named Gilbert.

This cathedral was the first religious building built by Christian crusaders in the 12th century.

It is believed that this is the oldest building in Lisbon. Compared to the frivolous Manueline architecture of the monastery of Jeronimos, the Romanesque linesthe cathedrals look quite severe. Thanks to the battlements and lancet windows in the towers, it, like other similar buildings in Portugal at that time, looked more like a fortress than a church. In the photo, the Lisbon Cathedral appears as a majestic and austere building.

Reconstruction

Reconstruction work continued into the 20th century, the window was restored in the 1930s. During this period of restoration, many of the neoclassical features both inside and outside the cathedral were simply stripped away to give the cathedral a more authentic medieval feel.

In recent years, excavations in the courtyard of the monastery have revealed many archaeological finds dating back to Roman times.