Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Aqueduto da Amoreira
It took an unsurprising 100 years or so to complete this breathtakingly ambitious aque-
duct. Finished in 1622, the huge cylindrical buttresses and several tiers of arches stalk
from 7km west of town to bring water to the marble fountain in Largo da Misericórdia.
It's best seen from the Lisbon road, west of the centre.
AQUEDUCT
Castelo
(adult/concession €1.50/0.75; 9.30am-1pm & 2.30-5.30pm)
You can walk around the battlements at
the castle for dramatic views across the baking plains. The original castle was built by the
Moors on a Roman site, and rebuilt by Dom Dinis in the 13th century, then again by Dom
João II in the late 15th century.
CASTLE
Igreja de Nossa
Senhora da Assunção
(Praça da República; 9.30am-12.30pm & 2-5pm winter, 10am-1pm & 3-6pm summer)
Francisco de
Arruda designed this sturdy fortified church in the early 16th century, and it served as the
town's cathedral until Elvas lost its episcopal status in 1882. Renovated during the 17th
and 18th centuries, it retains a few Manueline touches, such as the south portal. Inside is a
sumptuous 18th-century organ and some very pretty, but somewhat lost, 17th- and 18th-
century tiling.
CHURCH
Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Consolação
CHURCH
(Largo de Santa Clara; 9.30am-12.30pm & 2-5pm winter, 10am-1pm & 3-6pm summer)
This plain
church hides a thrilling interior. There are painted marble columns under a cupola, gilded
chapels and fantastic 17th-century
azulejos
covering the surface. The unusual octagonal
design was inspired by the Knights Templar chapel, which stood on a nearby site before
this church was built in the mid-16th century. It was once the church of the Dominicans,
and is all that is left of the original monastery.
Largo de Santa Clara
This delightful cobbled square facing the Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Consolação has a
PLAZA
