Lisbon - Praça Luis de Camoes

In 1867 a memorial to the well known Portuguese poet Luis de was erected on the tree lined Praça de Luis de Camoes which borders the Largo do Chiado to the west.

Camoes was the creator of the "Lusiadas", a heroic epic which glorifies the Portuguese voyages of discovery and conquest. (A contrasting portrayal of these events is given in "Peregrinaçao", written by the author Fernao Mendes Pinto, which was censored for a long time.) Camoes, the date of whose death has become a Portuguese national holiday, is depicted with a sword and books - certainly a somewhat too bombastic portrayal of the poet, who reported for duty in the civil service because of personal difficulties and who died in poverty.

The 4m/13ft high bronze statue stands on an octagonal pedestal, around which are grouped eight important Portuguese scientists and authors.