Abrir ListaThe hermitage of St. Geraldo was founded in 1599 by a neighborhood committee that converted it afterwards into a brotherhood for the cult of his patron saint.
As from the early years of the 20th century, the hermitage suffered a time of abandonment but was then reopened to the cult in 1941.
The building is preceded by an arte – topped by a bell tower – where there are benches for the pilgrims and a pulpit..
The gantry is overlapped by a porthole whith the following inscription: THIS PORTHOLE WAS MADE ALMS IN THE YEARS 160(?) / BEING BUTTLERS D.º PIZ M AMAD.º I LOB. BELCHIOR F. P.
In the lateral elevations, there are three buttresses, topped by pyramidal pinnacles.
Inside, there are three different spaces: nave, main chapel and vestry.
The nave, of rectangular plant, is topped by a half barrel vault, decorated with sgraffito with floral themes. Presently, the vertical plans of the nave are whitewashed but in the past they used to be totally covered by mural paintings. On the side of the Gospel there is an altar dedicated to Our Lady of the Pilar, with an altar piece in baroque carved wood that used to have belong to a sisterhood that was already extint in 1890.
The main chapel, in a separate location of the nave, opens in an arch topped by an eye piece, and presents an altar of gilded wood in rococo style. Its square plan is covered by a half-orange-shape dome, decorated with a wall painting from the 19th century that covered up the primitive painting. The chapel itself was also once totally covered by wall paintings but nowadays only four figurative paintings remain, in shapes of panels, in sets of two on each of the side of the elevations. The paintings, dated from the second half of the 17th century, depict St. Raphael guiding Tobias, St. Inacio of Antioch, St. Barbara and St.Águeda. The dome shows representations of the four Evangelists.
There is a marble washbasin in the vestry.
In the 18th century, a fair designated buy Fair of St. Geraldo, took place on October 13th and lasted two days. There is also information that a great number of worshippers would come to the hermitage during the first thirteen days of October.
REFERENCES:
Arquivo Nacional Torre do Tombo, Memórias Paroquiais, Dicionário Geográfico de Portugal, Tomo 1, nº 72, pp. 519 a 524.
ALCÂNTARA, Joaquim Pedro de, Breves Memórias da Villa das Alcáçovas, Évora, Minerva Eborense, 1890.
ESPANCA, Túlio, Inventário Artístico de Portugal. Distrito de Évora. Concelhos de Alandroal, Borba, Mourão, Portel, Redondo, Reguengos de Monsaraz, Viana do Alentejo e Vila Viçosa, Lisboa, Academia Nacional de Belas Artes, Tomo IX, Vol. 1, 1978.
SOUSA, Catarina Vilaça de, Roteiro Rota do Fresco, s. l., AMCAL, 2003.
As from the early years of the 20th century, the hermitage suffered a time of abandonment but was then reopened to the cult in 1941.
The building is preceded by an arte – topped by a bell tower – where there are benches for the pilgrims and a pulpit..
The gantry is overlapped by a porthole whith the following inscription: THIS PORTHOLE WAS MADE ALMS IN THE YEARS 160(?) / BEING BUTTLERS D.º PIZ M AMAD.º I LOB. BELCHIOR F. P.
In the lateral elevations, there are three buttresses, topped by pyramidal pinnacles.
Inside, there are three different spaces: nave, main chapel and vestry.
The nave, of rectangular plant, is topped by a half barrel vault, decorated with sgraffito with floral themes. Presently, the vertical plans of the nave are whitewashed but in the past they used to be totally covered by mural paintings. On the side of the Gospel there is an altar dedicated to Our Lady of the Pilar, with an altar piece in baroque carved wood that used to have belong to a sisterhood that was already extint in 1890.
The main chapel, in a separate location of the nave, opens in an arch topped by an eye piece, and presents an altar of gilded wood in rococo style. Its square plan is covered by a half-orange-shape dome, decorated with a wall painting from the 19th century that covered up the primitive painting. The chapel itself was also once totally covered by wall paintings but nowadays only four figurative paintings remain, in shapes of panels, in sets of two on each of the side of the elevations. The paintings, dated from the second half of the 17th century, depict St. Raphael guiding Tobias, St. Inacio of Antioch, St. Barbara and St.Águeda. The dome shows representations of the four Evangelists.
There is a marble washbasin in the vestry.
In the 18th century, a fair designated buy Fair of St. Geraldo, took place on October 13th and lasted two days. There is also information that a great number of worshippers would come to the hermitage during the first thirteen days of October.
REFERENCES:
Arquivo Nacional Torre do Tombo, Memórias Paroquiais, Dicionário Geográfico de Portugal, Tomo 1, nº 72, pp. 519 a 524.
ALCÂNTARA, Joaquim Pedro de, Breves Memórias da Villa das Alcáçovas, Évora, Minerva Eborense, 1890.
ESPANCA, Túlio, Inventário Artístico de Portugal. Distrito de Évora. Concelhos de Alandroal, Borba, Mourão, Portel, Redondo, Reguengos de Monsaraz, Viana do Alentejo e Vila Viçosa, Lisboa, Academia Nacional de Belas Artes, Tomo IX, Vol. 1, 1978.
SOUSA, Catarina Vilaça de, Roteiro Rota do Fresco, s. l., AMCAL, 2003.
MUNICÍPIO DE VIANA DO ALENTEJO