Tourist Attractions in Evora
Évora (altitude: 300m/985ft000), built on a low hill surrounded by rolling plains, was the old capital of the upland region of Alentejo and is now the chief town of its own district, the see of an archbishop and, since 1979, a University once more.
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Cathedral
The Early Gothic Cathedral in Évora, dating to the 12th C, in some way resembles a fortress from the outside. The interior is impressively decorated, and the Cathedral Treasury features some fine pieces.
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Largo das Portas de Moura
A lovely mid 16th C Renaissance fountain stands in the center of the Largo das Portas de Mouram, while the Moorish and Manueline style Casa Cordovil graces the south side.
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Praça do Giraldo
Praça do Giraldo, with a number of street cafes, is surrounded by lovely homes and arcades. A Renaissance fountain stands in the center.
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Roman Temple
The Roman Temple at Évora is one of the best preserved Roman remains in the country.
Aqueduct
Northeast of the Convento do Calvário, nearby, are the remains of an aqueduct, built in the 16th C. probably toreplace a Roman equivalent.
Casa dos Ossos
Adjoining the south aisle of the Igreja Real de Sao Francisco is the Casa dos Ossos, a 17th C. charnel house. Those of a more sensitive disposition should think twice before venturing inside, since the walls are formed by carefully arranged layers of human bones. The macabre effect is heightened by the skeletons of a man and a child hanging from this gruesome wall, and to top it all the motto over the door reads "our bones that lie within are waiting for yours to join them".
Hours
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open | 8:30 | 8:30 | 8:30 | 8:30 | 8:30 | Closed | Closed |
| Close | 13:00 | 13:00 | 13:00 | 13:00 | 13:00 | ||
| Open | 14:30 | 14:30 | 14:30 | 14:30 | 14:30 | ||
| Close | 18:00 | 18:00 | 18:00 | 18:00 | 18:00 |
Convent of Santa Clara
The former convent of Santa Clara, west of the Praça do Giraldo, founded in 1452, was substantially altered in the 16th C. Its church, with its elegant belfry, is worth seeing.
Convento do Calvário
An interesting convent, further north from the convent of Santa Clara, is the Convento do Calvário, its church and 16th C. cloister open to the public.
Ermida de Sao Brás
Further south from the Jardim Público along the Rua da República there is a monument, topped by an angel, commemorating the soldiers of Évora who fell in the First World War. This is within sight of the Ermida de Sao Bras, the hermitage of St Blaise, a fortress like building in a Late Gothic style showing Moorish influence which was erected in 1485 in thanksgiving for survival from the plague. The flat roof is crenellated and flanked by six conical pinnacles along each side, and the interior is unusually plain.
Festa da Senhora das Candeias
Festa da Senhora das Candeias with fair and religious ceremonies in the Sao-Brás Chapel.
Igreja Real de Sao Francisco
Quite close by to the Igreja da Graça stands the church of Sao Francisco, a former convent church dating from the second half of the 15th C. and perhaps the finest example of Manueline architecture in southern Portugal. The severe white interior, with the same white mortar joints as in the Cathedral, creates an effect of greater spaciousness than the latter.
Igreja da Graça
The Igreja da Graça, west of the Largo das Portas de Moura, was founded by Joao I in the 16th c, and its facade is reminiscent of the Italian Renaissance. The interior is extemely plain and likewise in Renaissance style.
Igreja das Mercês
The tour of Évora continues by returning to the walls around the Jardim Público, built in the 17th century according to the Vauban system, then turning west along the fortifications as far as the Rua do Raimundo, and the Igreja das Mercês, the church of the Mercês, which now houses the museum of decorative arts, the Museu das Artes Decorativas, containing arts and crafts as well as religious art.
Jardim Público
Farther south from the Igreja Real de Sao Francisco lies the town park, the Jardim Público, with its inviting shady walks and lovely flowers.
Jardim Público - Galeria das Damas
The Galeria das Damas inside the Jardim Público was part of the 15th/16th C. royal palace and its Moorish arcades today serve as exhibition areas. Together with the rest of the now demolished palace buildings it once enjoyed the glittering life of Manuel I's court, and was where the King received Vasco da Gama.
Museu de Évora
The former Archbishop's Palace, on the north side of the Cathedral, now houses the well stocked Museu de Évora, the regional museum, displaying Roman archeological finds, Romanesque and Gothic architectural fragments, Portuguese and Flemish pictures of the 16th-18th C., applied and decorative art, and two cenotaphs by Nicolas Chanterène for Dom Álvares de Costa (1535) and Dom Afonso de Portugal (1537).
The Museum is closed for redecoration and building works.
The Museum is closed for redecoration and building works.
Paço dos Condes de Basto
The Paço dos Condes de Basto is several hundred yards to the right beyond the Paço dos Duques de Cadaval. This Gothic Manueline palace of the Counts of Basto which was intermittently the residence of various kings contains part of the Romanesque cum Visigothic town walls.
Paço dos Duques de Cadaval
There used to be direct access from the north front of the Convento dos Lóios to the Paço dos Duques de Cadaval, the palace that King Joao I presented to the de Melos, ancestors of the Cadavals, at the end of the 14th C. Because of its pentagonal north tower originally part of the medieval town fortifications it is also known as the pentagonal palace, the "Palácio das Cinco Quinas".
Regional Handicrafts Museum
Opposite the side of the Igreja Real de Sao Francisco is what purports to be a regional handicrafts museum, the Museu de Artesanato Regional, but is in fact more of a sales outlet.
Evora Surroundings
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Evoramonte, Portugal
The old town of Évoramonte features traditional narrow winding streets lined with white houses. At the top of the town is a 14th C castle.
