Set on the central Largo da Graca hilltop in the historic Graca district of central Lisbon, the Igreja e Convento de Nossa Senhora da Graca is one of the most architecturally distinguished baroque ecclesiastical buildings of the historic centre of the Portuguese capital. The current substantial baroque church was completed in around 1738 and stands on the same site as a continuously occupied Augustinian religious foundation that has been on the location continuously since 1271. The original Augustinian foundation on the Graca hilltop was established in 1271 by the Portuguese provincial superior of the wider Augustinian Hermit Order. The original modest medieval church and convent were substantially rebuilt several times across the following four centuries, with the principal earlier major reconstruction being carried out during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries under the direct royal patronage of King John II and King Manuel I. The original medieval and early modern incarnations of the church were progressively damaged by the various Lisbon earthquakes of the early modern period. The current principal baroque church was substantially completed during the early eighteenth century to designs by the Portuguese architect Manuel da Costa Negreiros, working from around 1720 to 1738. The construction was funded primarily by substantial private donations from various wealthy local Lisbon merchant families during the early eighteenth century, with the principal individual donor being the prominent Brazilian colonial trader Sebastiao Pereira. The new building was substantially completed before the catastrophic 1755 Lisbon earthquake and survived the earthquake substantially intact. The principal church interior is one of the most distinguished individual examples of the wider Portuguese late baroque ecclesiastical interior decoration. The principal nave is decorated with elaborate continuous gilded woodcarving along the various lateral altar surrounds, with the famous central main altar at the eastern end being one of the principal Portuguese baroque ecclesiastical altarpieces. The various supplementary lateral chapels around the principal nave include the famous Senhor dos Passos chapel with the principal eighteenth-century processional sculpture that is the principal centrepiece of the famous annual Senhor dos Passos procession each Lent. The famous Miradouro da Graca terrace immediately outside the principal western entrance to the church provides one of the most distinguished panoramic viewing positions over the central historic district of Lisbon. The terrace provides direct continuous views west and south across the central Alfama and Baixa districts, with the principal central Castelo Sao Jorge in the foreground and the Tagus River and the south bank visible in the further distance. The terrace is one of the principal continuing meeting places of the wider central Lisbon social life throughout the year.

Type: Tourist Attraction

Address: Largo da Graca, Lisbon, Portugal

Opening Date: 01/01/1738