Sé do Porto

Sé do Porto

The Porto’s Cathedral began to be built in the first half of the 12th century, and its construction lasted until the beginning of the 13th century.

Its construction begins in the year of 1110 led by the bishop of Oporto, D. Hugo, and was mainly marked by a Romanesque style, visible in the main façade with rosette and two towers. However, over time it has been the subject of various extensions and renovations, and other movements are also visible, namely the gothic, 14th-15th centurys, which is particularly noticeable in the cloister and the chapel of St. John the Evangelist.

In the Baroque era, one of the greatest names of Oporto’s architecture arrives at the city commissioned to work in the building. Nicolau Nasoni, arrives from Malta to paint the frescoes that can still be seen on the high altar of the church, and later designs the Loggia at the northern face of the building. This architectural style is notorious on the top of the towers and on the balcony above the entrance.

Some of the church's architectural details were lost during the dictatorship times by the intervention of the Direção Geral dos Edifícios e Monumentos Nacionais (The general supervision of the national's monuments and buildings) that tried to bring onto light the original look and structural elements of the building, ending up not only changing the church but the whole of its surroundings.