PORTUGAL - Lisbon : Torre de Belém

PORTUGAL stamp :



Location of LISBON in PORTUGAL :

Lisbon (Portuguese : Lisboa) is the capital and largest city of Portugal. It is considered an alpha global city and is the seat of the district of Lisbon and the main city of the Lisbon region. Its municipality, which matches the city proper excluding the larger continuous conurbation, has a municipal population of 564 477 in 84.8 km² , while the Lisbon Metropolitan Area in total has around 2.8 million inhabitants.

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Belém Tower (in Portuguese Torre de Belém) or the Tower of St Vincent is a fortified tower located in the Belém district of Lisbon, Portugal. It is an UNESCO World Heritage Site (along with the nearby Jerónimos Monastery) because of the significant role it played in the Portuguese maritime discoveries of the era of the Age of Discoveries. The tower was commissioned by King John II to be both part of a defense system at the mouth of the Tagus River and a ceremonial gateway to Lisbon.

The tower was built in the early sixteenth century and is a prominent example of the Portuguese Manueline style, but it also incorporates hints of other architectural styles. The structure was built from lioz limestone and is composed of a bastion and the 30 meter (100 foot), four story tower. It has incorrectly been stated that the tower was built in the middle of the Tagus and now sits near the shore because the river was redirected after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. In fact, the tower was built on a small island in the Tagus River near the Lisbon shore.

UNESCO World Heritage Site :

MONASTERY OF THE HIERONYMITES
AND TOWER OF BELEM IN LISBON

Date of inscription : 1983

Standing at the entrance to Lisbon harbour, the Monastery of the Hieronymites – construction of which began in 1502 – exemplifies Portuguese art at its best. The nearby Tower of Belém, built to commemorate Vasco da Gama's expedition, is a reminder of the great maritime discoveries that laid the foundations of the modern world.

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Postcard sent by Teresa, as "caracolinho"
Private swap - Reference PT001

Lisbon : view of Torre de Belém, UNESCO w.h.s.

Obrigado