Best of the stately home Castle / Tower Guard Santiago (Ansião) (**)-A Roman treasure hidden under a medieval tower
February 8, 2011 by Castile
Categories: Alvaiázere and Ansião , Municipalities , District-Leiria , artistic styles , Roman Empire , More , and Solar Tour , All articles
The villagers of Santiago Guardian dubbed it, with haughty air, as "Castelo de Santiago", is composed of the Tower, the Palace and Chapel. The sixteenth-century Manueline palace is a peculiar example of civil architecture of the sixteenth century Lusitanian. Very vandalized, was recently restored, and it became the most beautiful archaeological achamento of the country in the twenty-first century.
Architecture of Santiago Tower Guard
Conspicuous by the geometry and the consistency of the design, the Manueline AC palace, is a peculiar example of civil architecture of the sixteenth century Lusitanian. Taken together, it becomes clear the tower, fifteenth, warlike spirit, the prevailing element by number of floors in confrontation with the body of a ground floor that limits the central courtyard. The volume of the chapel, attached to the east wing, is the third prominent element of the set.
The Tower is strong square of limestone ashlar and crowned with merlons. It has cracks, gothic windows and loopholes. Access to the interior takes place by a portal from a stone staircase. The interior has three floors. It is now possible to climb to the top floor.
The PAÇO of Vasconcelos, the plant is approximately square, with four wings around a central courtyard, is developed on one floor, in perfect balance with the architectural tower of the chapel. The size marked Manueline windows have all different design. Also inside the building, is a carved scallop shell, to remember the Pilgrims, who in the Way of Santiago de Compostela, which could house up here.
CHAPEL sixteenth century, the square plan is supported by two buttresses, it has a beautiful cover in a ribbed vault, the start has been supported by corbels with Manueline decoration, ornamental grammar adopted for the keys of the vault with the exception of the central bearing the coat of arms the Chambers. This space served as a barn for a few tens of years and honor is done to animals that do not degrade very much!
The History of the Tower of Guard Santiago
The original tower has been built by Dom Afonso Henriques, after his defeat in Santarém; important part of a defensive set, built new or reclassified, which include, and here only refer to materialize the current local notables, the castles Arouce (Lousã) (*), Penela (**), the Germanel (*), Pombal (**), Texas (**) Soure (*) and Montemor-o-Velho (***). In the Municipality of Ansião, had built towers still Ladeia (in Alvorge where ruins still exist that should be reclassified and labeled) and the Tower of All Valley (who named the town and that nothing remains).
The tower may have belonged to the Infante Dom Pedro, but after his death at the Battle of Alfarrobeira, D. Afonso V gave this property to John de Vasconcelos and all his successors, with all their rents, and affiliations, a nobleman of the royal house of the king and council. The recovery of the Palace is set in the first half of the sixteenth century, rebuilt in the Manueline style. In 1621, John de Vasconcelos e Sousa receives the title of 2nd Earl of Castle Top. The set remained in the possession of this family since the sixteenth century until 1996.
As the name indicates the location, here stood a section of the Portuguese Way to Santiago, which runs through Santarém, Leiria, Coimbra. The residence may have functioned as inn.
There is a photograph taken in 1955, the gateway to the courtyard, which has since disappeared. On the lintel, was engraved with the date 1544 arms.
The loss of housing status of master degenerates in the lease of space for housing, shops, stables and storerooms. In 1996 the city purchased the whole lot degraded.
The miraculous discovery of a Roman villa in Santiago Guard
Along with all the architectural intervention, also began in 2002 a work of archaeological research. Note that here, there were already indications of Roman presence, including a stone with Latin inscription on the facade of the Tower or the existence of tegulae. Between 2002 and 2005, the archaeological intervention turned out, within the walls of the manor house, a villa late-century Roman IV / V, where seventeen were laid bare floors mosaics of extraordinary importance, which are now visible, protected by a ground glass.
The Roman villa is part of the axis of romanization, which part of Coimbra, with the cryptoporticus Museum Machado de Castro (***), with the mother of water Alcabideque (*), which served as the monumental city of Conimbriga (** *) and villa Rabaçal (**).
Conimbriga, and Santiago Rabaçal Guard, have all the most important Roman mosaics from Portugal. The co-existence, in one place, a sixteenth-century manor house and a Roman villa, it is unique in the Iberian Peninsula.
The Villa, which had undergone several renovations, it would be monumental and luxurious atrium, peristyle, triclinium, large rooms - a reception in the area of worship with a small apse, which could serve to accommodate any subject related to that worship, a great hall with 4.89 meters wide and 19.85 long and up to have a space for heating the air. Your reply is installed in the museum of Conímbriga.
The floors musivos belong to the last of the three major periods of the mosaics in the Iberian Peninsula, and the similarity of Rabaçal, are dated from the late fourth century or the beginning of the V.
Having four preferred colors - red (the color of the Roman Empire), yellow (the color of wealth), blue and white, have geometric figuring, magnificent floral and symbolic figures of dense compositions. The floors are of indescribable beauty, and one of the most enigmatic, is a true masterpiece, this may be the most beautiful work of art from the dawn of Christianity in the Iberian Peninsula, but all this is speculative, that the experts will soon be shed light on its true meaning, it is disconcerting to its mysterious beauty.
In conclusion, we can say that the Monumental Complex of Santiago Guard is unique in the Iberian landscape, and that is the most thrilling discovery of the national heritage of this century in regard to the Roman Empire to date. A Must See!
