Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Marvão - Portugal

Nowadays I don't get cards every day and it is rare to get many cards in one day, but in some special and rare days the cards are so many that do not fit in the mailbox. Something like that happened last week. Paulo sent me an envelope full of cards, I didn't count them but should be between 100-150. I imagine that the postman had to ring the bell to deliver them. I'll show just a few of those cards and I'll start with a card of the Church of Santa Maria in Marvão.

Fotografia de João José Bica * Edição da CMM
There are references to the parish of Santa Maria since 1321, when it was given to the Order of the Hospital, led by the Crato Priory in this region of Alentejo.
The church was built near the castle in Gothic style. It was remodeled during the century XVII, a fact that testifies to the demographic expansion that the village reached and did not turn to repeat to this day, keeping timelessly its medieval features.
Transformed into a Municipal Museum in 1987, we can still recognize the religious function in the structure and in a XVIIII century chapel, covered with figurative tile panels and a Baroque carved altar.
In the museum space is possible to see archaeological pieces found nearby and ethnographic pieces that help to make a historical reading of Marvão. There's also an exhibition dedicated to popular beliefs and remedies, which are still used in this region.

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