Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Cloisters:
Leave the church (turn right), purchase your ticket, and enter the
cloisters. These restored cloisters are the architectural highlight of Belém. The lacy arcade
is Manueline; the simpler diamond and decorative rose frieze above the top floor is
Renaissance. Study the carvings, especially the gargoyles above the lower set of arches.
Among these functioning rainspouts, find a monkey, a kitten, and a cricket. The small
basin in the corner (where the monks washed up before meals) marks the entrance to the
refectory, or dining hall—today an occasional concert venue lined with fine 18th-century
tiles. The tiles are considered textbook Rococo (from the French word for “shell,” as you
can see). Rococo ignores the parameters set by the architecture, unlike Baroque, which
works within the structure.
To the left of the refectory is the burial spot of Portugal's most revered modern poet,
hibit of the lengthy restoration process, as well as the tomb of Alexandre Herculano, a
Romantic 19th-century poet. Quotes from Herculano adorn his tomb: “Sleep? Only the
cold cadaver that doesn't feel sleeps. The soul flies and wraps itself around the feet of the
All-Powerful.”
