"The consecration of this church has been assigned to the year 1495,however, the temple that we know now is already clearly from the 16th and falls within what is usually called Manueline Baroque style and is even one of the most typical local productions of this "style".
Although enriched in later times, the temple retains much of its original elements, in particular the portals.
The main portal is a work full of originality. It´s a "broken arch bordered by dotted banded torus and based on thin small columns with twisted" stems, framed by a "polycentric arch radiated by huge cogulhos ( small decorative stone depicting stylized leaves, commonly used in the architecture of the Gothic style) in their meetings". The decor is one of its interesting features, and is composed by stems and rosettes that intersect with the work of precious stones to form a sort of ephemeral architecture. The chapiters concentrate figurative elements like two small human heads on each side, as if to protect the passage into the temple.
The lateral portals are simpler, but equally relevant in the context of regional Manueline. From the south side, the entrance has some similarities with the principal, in particular in terms of solutions of cogulhos and vegetal stems intertwined with the work of architecture.
The interior has three naves split by arches built on pillars, whose chapiters are decorated with horizontal bands of plaited rods.
The Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament is original and was certainly built with funerary purposes. It is lined with tiles and a Baroque altarpiece, but the coverage is domed with cross vaults and decorated with the cross of Christ, an element that identifies its promoter as a member of this Order.
The interiors date from the 18th century . The triumphal arch as well as the arc that gives access to the baptismal chapel. The guilded altarpiece is on of the most important of the region. In the side chapel the gilded altarpiece dates from the 17th century.
The temple has not been object of remarkable restorations, except for some occasional works in 1989 and 1994.
However, it still needs some studies because its origin is not fully understood. Some points of the decoration styles need a deeper comparison and some elements are hard to explain."
(Text adapted from Portuguese Heritage website - IGESPAR - (
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