The Old Cathedral of Coimbra, built in the 12th century (1140-1184), during the reign of D. Afonso Henriques and due to D. Miguel Salomão, bishop of Coimbra. It was built on top of another temple. In this place it existed, at least since the century. IX, another temple with invocation to Mariae Virginis. Definitely conquered by Muslims, on July 9, 1064 through Fernando Magno (King of Castile and Leon) and Sizenando Davides, a natural Mozarab from the Tentúgal region, and his first Governor. The temple dedicated to Santa Maria de Coimbra was destroyed in 1117 due to a Muslim attack. Preserving the foundational stone of the previous construction that started to appear in the central nave of the Old Cathedral of Coimbra. Its construction must be understood within a broader strategy of affirming national autonomy and independence. Coimbra, the royal city par excellence in the 12th century, was thus endowed with a very dignified cathedral, which honored not only the city but also the first generation of Portuguese people who were then asserting themselves.
The Cloister of the Old Cathedral is a construction of transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Built during the reign of D. Afonso II (1218-1223) it was however programmed since 1176. It would be D. Afonso II who would give a greater incentive to th...
For its architectural quality, and for its state of conservation, it is the most representative building of the Romanesque in Portugal. The façade has three protruding volumes, the largest of which is that of the axial portal. This axial portal ha...
Chapel of S. Miguel, Romanesque architecture. It was the place chosen to bury Chancellor Julião Pais and his family. The cloister is a transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Built during the reign of D. Afonso II (1218-1223) it was however programm...
Chapel of S. Nicolau. Tomb ark of Bishop D. Afonso de Castelo Branco, great patron of Coimbrian art and culture in the 17th century. Tomb of D.Sizenando, first governor of Coimbra after the Christian Reconquest on 9 July 1064. Sizenando was a grea...
Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament by João de Ruão, dated 1566. In this chapel, Jesus Christ the Redeemer is represented at the center flanked by 10 apostles. Below the 4 evangelists on the right and on the opposite side the Virgin Mary with the Chil...
Main chapel and Gothic altarpiece built between the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 20th century. XVI. by the Flanders masters Olivier de Ghent and Jean d´Ypres. Its central motive is the "Assumption of the Virgin Mary". The patro...
Chapel of S. Pedro. Renaissance altarpiece by Nicolau de Chanterene where there is also an image of S. Paulo. At the bottom of the altarpiece, in the center, we highlight the representation of S. Pedro to be crucified upside down. Below the grave ...
Santa Clara Altar (late 16th century) and sculpture by S. Cristobal with the Child Jesus on his shoulder. Tomb of D. Pedro Martins (14th century)
Tomb of the Byzantine princess Vataça Lascaris, queen of Queen Santa Isabel. Tomb ark with three double-headed eagles by Mestre Pero (14th century)
Mudéjar tiles. Acquired in Seville, Spain at the beginning of the 16th century by Olivier de Gand under the patronage of D. Jorge de Almeida.
Chapel of Santa Maria (13th-14th century chapter hall). It was here that the Misericórdia of Coimbra worked. Cruise in polychrome stone of the century. XIV. The cloister is a construction of transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Built during the r...
Construction of transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Built during the reign of D. Afonso II (1218-1223) it was however programmed since 1176. It would be D. Afonso II who would give a greater incentive to the construction of the Cloister because ...
Construction of transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Built during the reign of D. Afonso II (1218-1223) it was however programmed since 1176. It would be D. Afonso II who would give a greater incentive to the construction of the Cloister because ...
Interior of the Porta Especiosa c.1530 by the Norman sculptor (Jean de Rouen) João de Ruão and Nicolau de Chanterene. Inspired by Italian Renaissance models. It is an innovative architecture for Portugal, a monumental facade pioneered by the Portu...
