Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
scrolls are from the Old Testament, those holding topics are from the New Testament);
fourth—Biblical kings and secular kings (those with globes in their hands); fifth—doctors
of the Church with symbols of their martyrdom; and the express lane—female saints.
Overseeing all this traffic is Jesus with the four evangelists in the tympanum. And the 12
apostles provide a foundation for it all. The statues are 19th-century copies of 14th-cen-
tury originals. At the top of the pointed arch are two small coats of arms: Portugal's on
the right and the House of Lancaster's on the left (a reminder of the marriage of John I
and Philippa that cemented centuries of friendship between Portugal and England).
• Enter the church.
Church Interior:
The tall pillars leading your eye up to the “praying hands” of poin-
ted arches, the warm light from stained-glass windows, the air of sober simplicity—this is
classic Gothic, from Europe's Age of Faith. The church's lack of ornamentation reflects
the vision of the project's first architect, Afonso Domingues (worked 1388-1402). Com-
pared to Alcobaça's monastery (described later), this interior is dimmer and feels more
somber, though the stained glass more dramatically colors the floors and columns (only
the glass around the altar is original).
