Monuments

The Misericórdia (Mercy) building and the church date from the 16th century. 

Created in 1520, the Misericórdia brotherhood developed to the extent that they decided to build the so-called “Casa das Varandas”, in the second quarter of the 16th century. This 1589 building, designed by João Lopes, o Moço (the Boy) is a singular example of Renaissance and Mannerist inspired civil architecture, with Italian and Flemish influences.

Renovation work on the church started in 1716 and were entrusted to Manuel Pinto de Vilalobos, a military engineer working in Viana. The decorative opulence displayed inside the church is in keeping with the tendency of the time. It is seen in Portuguese style gilded carving of the altarpieces, by Ambrósio Coelho, in the glazed tile coatings, the work of Policarpo de Oliveira Bernardes, in the frescoes on the ceiling, by Manuel Gomes. It is unquestionably one of the finest examples of the Baroque in the whole of Portugal.