Sao Francisco Porto

 

It might seem puzzling to many that Franciscan churches can be so overwhelmingly ornate, covered inside with gold, when their founder was so in favour of a life of poverty.  Benedictines, Cistercians and the rest  ended in the Baroque era much the same. Today we can only be stunned at the quantity quality of the art. So precious is it that it is became a National Monument in 1910 and a UNESCO World Heritage Ste in 1996. The monastery was destroyed by fire in 1832, So it's no longer a working church.

 It is a 14th century building now entirely overlaid with gilded woodwork.  Entering is like going into a golden cave. As you proceed down the nave the arches to each side  gold covered giving sight of gold covered altars. Sitwell says "The interior of Sao Francisco..is a fantastic golden vision, a thing only to be seen in Portugal and nowhere else.... It is a Gothic building but the Baroque overlay has made it more like Romanesque. The pointed arches have been covered with round-headed canopies and pelmets of broken pediments. The effect is quite oriental almost like a pagoda. What of the artists who created these great works? Unknown, but surely joyful and past the Protestant threat, and fear of the Inquisition. They were wonderful carvers and joiners, rather than architects." In fact the carving is from several styles. The ceiling and nave arches are from the Bernini inspired first phase of Portuguese wood sculpture in the late 17th century which Robert C. Smith called the National style period . The chancel arch and frame of the high altar are Baroque of the reign of Joao V and the centre of the high altar is Rococo of 1750-85. The high altar area was closed for restoration so the full majesty of the building was not seen and I have to return! 

The most memorable feature for me was the Tree of Jesse in the north aisle by Felipe da Silva and Antonio Gomes (1718). It represents a family tree of Jesus with twelve kings of Judah connected through branches of the tree to the  body of Jesse. On the top of the tree is Joseph, under an image of the Virgin and the Child. The niches flanking this tree contain statues of St. Anne and St. Joachim (father and mother of Mary and four Franciscan doctors who wrote about the Immaculate conception.

Our visit began with the 18th century neo-classical Third Order of St. Francis church and the Convent Museum. It was a dull rainy day and as you can see from the photos it was dark inside the church :not ideal and we must return one day soon! I have included a lot of photos below to try to get across the intricacy of the carving and the quite extraordinary achievement of  the great wood sculptors here.

Church of the Third Order 

Tree of Jesse