Author: aluno

Summary

In this leaflet we are going to talk about: Terreiro do Paço.
In this leaflet we will address the following topics:
—> History/Historic Events
—> Who build it?
—> When it was build?
—> What has changed over the centuries

Terreiro do Paço (Palace Yard )

Praça do Comércio, 1100-148 Lisboa

History/History Events

The Praça do Comercio, formerly Terreiro do Paço, is a square in Baixa de Lisboa located next to the River Tagus in the area that was the site of the Palace of the kings of Portugal for about two centuries and which is now partially occupied by some government departments .
In the earthquake of 1755, where today are the buildings that constitute the Terreiro do Paço, existed the royal palace, in whose library were kept 70000 volumes and hundreds of works of art, including paintings of Titian, Rubens and Correggio. Everything was destroyed. The precious Real archive with documents pertaining to the oceanic exploration, among which, for example numerous letters from the discovery of Brazil and other old documents were also lost.
On February 1, 1908, King Carlos and his son, Prince Luís Filipe were murdered as they passed the square.

Palace Yard

Who build it/How was it
The new trade square has a quadrangular shape and is bounded on three sides by uniform facades and open on the front over the water. The design of the buildings and their facades was conceived by the architect Carlos Mardel, based on principles of uniformity and rationality. The sequence of large arcades on the street on the ground floor, as well as the composition of the two upper floors, translates well into an aesthetic harmony based on simplicity and rhythmic repetition. Despite the harmony with the international artistic proposals of the mid-Eighteenth century, tuned with both the monumentality of the final Baroque and the rationality of emerging neoclassic, the memory of the architectural pre-existences was Respected, as the great turrets are directly inspired by the former Mannerist turret of the Philippine royal Palace.
The arch was only completed in 1873, with architectural design of Veríssimo José da Costa and sculptural decoration with allegorical and historical figures of Calmels and Victor Bastos. By its form and composition, it draws inspiration from the models of eclecticism, particularly in the great arches of triumph of the city of Paris.
When it was build/What has changed over the centuries?
Terreiro do Paço (Palace Yard) was built in
In this ambience of uniformity, serenity and balance, we highlight, by the plastic effect, the sculptural monument representative of the Royal Enlightenment Power and the central arch of the north façade of the square that rises over the thrust of Rua Augusta. The sculpture is located in the center of the square. On a large stone pedestal, stands the equestrian statue of King D. José I, in bronze, marking the monumentality of space and ordering every set built. The monument, authored by the sculptor Machado de Castro, was inaugurated in 1775, in a ceremonial that also marked the conclusion of a significant part of the buildings of Baixa.