We make a return visit to the Convento de Cristo (twelfth century) in Tomar (pop 36,414 in 2021). We know the Igreja in the Praça da República is recently cleaned and recall that something similar happened at the Convento inside the Castelo. While we were in Tomar last July for the Festa dos Tabuleiros, it was impossible to see anything for the crowd – so today, we are finally able to enjoy these sites in our own way.
First, while dodging a misty rain, we find that the Convento's visitor entrance has moved from inside the complex near the campanário, to the north side, behind the claustro, and up the stairs to the Sala dos Reis. This also allows access to Gothic Clautro de Cemitério from the west (rather than the south), and the Sacristia Nova with its gorgeously faded ceiling.
Inside the Casa Forte do Tesouro (treasury), the painéis de azulejos are unfamiliar (perhaps the Tesouro was closed last time). The images show the birth and death of Christ: Annunciation, Visitation, Nativity, and Adoration on one side; and Jesus Scourged, the Crown of Thorns, Falling with the Cross, and the Crucifixion on the other.
We return through Claustro de Lavagem and find a corridor that allows a peek to the northwest turret (looks very clean).
We are overjoyed to be back in the Charola (late twelfth century). With our new iPhone cameras, we hope to capture new details, the incredible history, and all the color (zoom in; look at the detail). We learn that the large figures around the outer columns are Old Testament prophets carved by Olivier de Gand (early sixteenth century), such as Profeta Sofonias in the striped hat, directly behind the altar.
With the Via Crúcis still fresh in our minds, we realize the pairs of angels in the upper lunettes, split by the lancets, are displaying objects from the Passion: the Crown of Thorns and Death Shroud (from Santa Verônica), the Cross and whipping post, His robes and ladder, the nails and hammer, and so forth.
Our continuing guide, Saramago's 'traveller', provides some perspective:
Strictly speaking, a sculpture, this gateway, or even a simple painting, cannot be explained in words. It is not even enough to look, since the eyes also have to learn to read shapes. Nothing can be translated in this way. A sonnet by Camões cannot be rendered in stone. All one can do faced with this portal is to look, identify the different elements according to the knowledge one has, and try to fill in the gaps in this knowledge—but each traveller has to do this for himself, one person cannot do the seeing and explaining for anyone else.
[…]
The Convent at Tomar is the portal, the Manueline church, the Charola or Templars’ oratory, the great window, and the cloister. And everything else. What most impresses the traveller is the Charola, because of its antiquity, of course, because of its exotic octagonal shape, but above all because he can see in it the perfect expression of the idea of sanctuary, a secret place that can be visited but is not on display, a central point that is the focus for believers and around which the lesser attractions are laid out. So the Charola is at one and the same time a radiant sun and the navel of the world. (José Saramago, “Journey to Portugal,” 1990; trans Hopkinson-Caistor, 2000)
Some clever rascal has made some ornamental knots in the retaining line at the back of the Janela do Capítulo (early sixteenth century). All the stonework here looks crisp and clean, as they did during our last trip.
Passing through the Mannerist Claustro Principal (late sixteenth century), we make our way to the south terrace of the Claustro de Santa Bárbara, and can finally see the window in its restored glory (compare to our visit in 2022).
Everything has already been said about the Great Window: which means probably that there is everything still to say. Don’t expect any revelations from the traveller. Except for the firm conviction that the Manueline style would not be what it is if the temples in India were not what they are. Diogo de Arruda may not have been near the Indian ocean, but there’s no doubt whatsoever that Portuguese ships carried artists with them, and they brought back drawings, sketches, copies: an ornamental style as dense as the Manueline could not have been created, elaborated and refined in the shade of our olive groves: it is a cultural whole discovered elsewhere and recreated here. Please forgive the traveller these rather bold conjectures.
Still, the terrace offers only oblique views, and we need to make our way down to the lower level. On our way, we stop into the Dormitórios and the Cruzeiro (corredores do dormitório) – at the crossing of the long corridors is a seated Christ figure, Senhor da Cana Verde (seventeenth century), in a polychrome tile alcove.
In the neighboring quarto, conveniently left open for tourists, we can look at a distance, strait across the claustro to the Janela. And from the eastern loggia, there is a spiral stair that takes us down. The moss and grime may have added a well-earned patina as well as some 'gravitas', but in addition to its conservation, this type of intricate work is best enjoyed in a 'fresh' state. We see what the artists who made it saw; up close, the details and imagery are spectacular.
On the lower level we find the Refeitório and Cozinha. Again, spaces that had not been accessible during our last visit. The Refeitório is a single vaulted space with beautiful central pulpits on side. The Cozinha is a series of rambling spaces for water supply, food storage, prep, and cooking.
As we leave, the skies open, and streams of rainwater pour from the gargoyles. After that wonderful tour, it's a mad dash to the car.
When we get back to town, the squall is passed, and there are blue skies; the town wears the Castelo like a crown. We have lunch on the Corredoura (Rua Serpa Pinto), the lovely pedestrian street connecting the Rio Nabão and the Praça da República.
After lunch, we enter the Igreja de São João de Baptista (fifteenth century). The porta lateral (facing north) and the porta principal (facing the Praça to the west) are decorated with more elegant Manueline surrounds. The campanário features a trio of panels representing Portugal (brasão) and the Order of Christ, and a fantastic clock face with skeletons at the bottom as reminders of the passage of time.
Again, the benefits of the recent restoration can be seen, especially in the tracery in the archivolts and under the cornice of the porta principal, where the light and dark 'hollow' of the amazing carvings really 'pop'. However, the aedicules on either side of the door are empty. The figure at the very top of the facade does not appear to be São João, but rather an armored Templar knight holding a halberd.
We did visit the church during the Festa dos Tabuleiros, but it was so crowded we only got a small taste; today we can linger and enjoy the restored church without distractions. It's a simple layout, with side aisles, a central nave (five bays), and two slightly flamboyant Baroque-looking triumphal archways providing a 'crossing' (only the north transept has depth).
There is a captivating triptych in the batistério, and a set of four panels hung in the aisle opposite (south), eluding a lovely Ultima Ceia (sixteenth century) by Gregório Lopes.
A delicately carved stone pulpit is in keeping with the Mainline portas, though with some Gothic details. Though some of the tracery is broken, the craftsmanship is impressive – and we notice that one of the bundled columns is shaped to allow the priest to stand. The capela-mor is bright, trimmed in gold, and with a unique azulejos known as "ponta de diamante" in the wainscot. The entire altarpiece appears be cleaned and restored, though the side panels are missing (perhaps still being conserved). The shadows cast against the honey-toned backdrop add drama. And the markings for Portugal and the Order of Christ are on the medallions in the vault.
On the way back to the hotel, we stumble on the Capela de Santa Iria (fifteenth and sixteenth century); this was also closed during our first visit. In particular, the Renaissance doorway is an attention-grabber – the startled faces draw us in.
The Capela marks the site of Santa Iria's gruesome martyrdom. The carvings, paintings, and decorative details are all charmingly aged – but still amazingly well preserved. In the altar is a a figure of Santa Iria, with martyr's palm and gospel, under a lightly painted arch of boards supported by a semi-circular brace. In the ribbed vault above Her are medallions with vague images of birds and flowers, with angles and leafy designs in the triangular coffers.
Below in the wainscot are azulejos in a dynamic geometric pattern ('tipo tapete'); and above in the archway's roundels, reminiscent of the Convento, are Santa Iria and four saints, perhaps the Evangelists as they all appear to be writing or holding books.
There is one full-bay side chapel, the Capela dos Vales (the Vale family), with a stunning Manueline vault, polychrome telework, and a relief of the scene at Calvary by João de Ruão (sixteenth century). Like the entry door, the pediment above the archway includes the piercing stares of a European and a Native American.
In a smaller recess, there is an image of São Francisco (this convent belonged to the Ordem de Santa Clara) holding a skull and receiving the stigmata. The images in the ceiling are too faded to read. On the wall opposite the altar is what appears to be an 'end panel' to the ceiling, along with some carved elements that might have been attached above the santuário. Looking back at that space, we can see a Renaissance-era image of the Crucifixion, cut by vertical stripes where all this was mounted (see top-most photo).
The Capela is concentrated dose of Portuguese iconography and art, and an ideal way to encapsulate Tomar.
