The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte is a Portuguese Catholic shrine in Tenões, outside the city of

Braga Braga (; ) is a cities of Portugal, city and a Municipalities of Portugal, municipality, capital of the northwestern Portugal, Portuguese Braga (district), district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality ...

, in northern

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. Its name means ''Good

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

of the Mount''. This sanctuary is a notable example of

Christian pilgrimage Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to sit ...

site with a monumental,

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

stairway A stairwell or stair room is a room in a building where a stair is located, and is used to connect walkways between floors so that one can move in height. Collectively, a set of stairs and a stairwell is referred to as a staircase or stairway. ...

that climbs 116 meters (381 feet). It is an important

tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity on ...

attraction of Braga. On 7 July 2019, the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte in Braga was inscribed as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

History

Many hilltops in Portugal and other parts of Europe have been sites of religious devotion since antiquity, and it is possible that the Bom Jesus hill was one of these. However, the first indication of a

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

over the hill dates from 1373. This chapel - dedicated to the Holy Cross - was rebuilt in the 15th and 16th centuries. In 1629 a pilgrimage church was built dedicated to the ''Bom Jesus'' (Good Jesus), with six chapels dedicated to the

Passion of Christ The Passion (from latin language, Latin , "to suffer, bear, endure") is the short final period before the death of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, described in the four canonical gospels. It is commemorated in Christianity every year during Holy ...

. The present Sanctuary started being built in 1722, under the patronage of the

Archbishop of Braga The Archdiocese of Braga () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Portugal. It is known for its use of the Rite of Braga, a use of the liturgy distinct from the Roman Rite and other Latin liturgical ...

, Rodrigo de Moura Telles. His

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

is seen over the gateway, in the beginning of the stairway. Under his direction the first stairway row, with chapels dedicated to the ''

Via Crucis The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

'', were completed. Each chapel is decorated with

terra cotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based Vitrification#Ceramics, non-vitreous ceramicOED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used ...

sculptures depicting the Passion of Christ. He also sponsored the next segment of stairways, which has a

zigzag A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular. In geometry, this pattern is described as a ...

shape and is dedicated to the ''

Five Senses A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the surroundings through the detection of stimuli. Although, in some cultures, five human senses were traditionally identified as su ...

''. Each sense (Sight, Smell, Hearing, Touch, Taste) is represented by a different

fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" ( genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...

. At the end of this stairway, a Baroque church was built around 1725 by architect Manuel Pinto Vilalobos. The works on the first chapels, stairways and church proceeded through the 18th century. In an area behind the church (the ''Terreiro dos Evangelistas''), three octagonal chapels were built in the 1760s with statues depicting episodes that occur after the

Crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross, beam or stake and left to hang until eventual death. It was used as a punishment by the Achaemenid Empire, Persians, Ancient Carthag ...

, like the meeting of Jesus with

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...

. The exterior design of the beautiful chapels is attributed to renowned Braga architect André Soares. Around these chapels there are four Baroque fountains with statues of the Evangelists, also dating from the 1760s. Around 1781, archbishop Gaspar de Bragança decided to complete the ensemble by adding a third segment of stairways and a new church. The third stairway also follows a zigzag pattern and is dedicated to the '' Three Theological Virtues'': Faith, Hope and Charity, each with its fountain. Overall the staircase has 583 steps. The old church was demolished and a new one was built following a Neoclassic design by architect

Carlos Amarante Carlos Luís Ferreira da Cruz Amarante (30 October 1748 – 22 January 1815) was a Portuguese people, Portuguese military engineer and architect. He played a key role in the transition from Baroque and Rococo styles to Neoclassicism in Portugal. ...

. This new church, began in 1784, had its interior decorated in the beginning of the 19th century and was consecrated in 1834. The main

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

is dedicated to the Crucifixion. In the 19th century, the area around the church and stairway was expropriated and turned into a park. In 1882, to facilitate the access to the Sanctuary, the

water balance The law of water balance states that the inflows to any water system or area is equal to its outflows plus change in storage during a time interval. In hydrology, a water balance equation can be used to describe the flow of water in and out of ...

Bom Jesus funicular The Bom Jesus do Monte Funicular (), is a Portugal, Portuguese funicular transport in Freguesia (Portugal), civil parish of Nogueiró e Tenões, in the Concelho, municipality of Braga, in the Braga (district), district of the same name. Operated b ...

was built linking the city of Braga to the hill. This was the first funicular to be built in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

and is still in use. The Sanctuary has been classified as Property of Public Interest since 1970.

Significance

The design of the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus, with its Baroque nature emphasised by the zigzag form of its stairways, influenced many other sites in Portugal (like

Lamego Lamego (; ) is a city and municipality in the Viseu District, in the Norte Region, Portugal, Norte Region of the Douro Subregion, Douro in northern Portugal. Located on the shores of the Balsemão River, the municipality has a population of 26,691 ...

) and

colonial Brazil Colonial Brazil (), sometimes referred to as Portuguese America, comprises the period from 1500, with the Discovery of Brazil, arrival of the Portuguese, until 1815, when Brazil was elevated to a United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves ...

, like the Sanctuary of

Congonhas Congonhas (Congonhas do Campo until 1948) is a historical Brazilian city located in the state of Minas Gerais. It is situated south from Belo Horizonte, the capital of state of Minas Gerais, by the highway BR-040. As of 2020, the city had a popu ...

. As the pilgrims climbed the stairs, (by tradition encouraged to do so on their knees) they encountered a theological programme that contrasted the senses of the material world with the virtues of the spirit, at the same time as they experienced the scenes of the

. The culmination of the effort was the temple of God, the church on the top of the hill. The presence of several

s along the stairways give the idea of purification of the

faithful Faithful may refer to: Film and television * ''Faithful'' (1910 film), an American comedy short directed by D. W. Griffith * ''Faithful'' (1936 film), a British musical drama directed by Paul L. Stein * ''Faithful'' (1996 film), an American cr ...

. The new church (built 1784–1834) by

was one of the first Neoclassic churches of Portugal. This church was elevated to a Minor Basilica status on 5 July 2015 by

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

Gallery

File:BragaBomJesusdo MonteViaSacra.jpg, "Via Sacra" Image:Igrejabomjesusbraga.JPG, Façade of the church of Bom Jesus

References

External links

*
Portuguese Institute for Architectural HeritageGeneral Bureau for National Buildings and Monuments (Portugal)Basilica of Bom Jesus, Old Goa
The Shrine of Saint Francis Xavier
“Bom Jesus de Braga” seeking World Heritage status – Portugal
The sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte, in Braga city, mainland Portugal, is seeking UNESCO’s World Heritage status as part of its 200th anniversary celebrations, reported Lusa news agency.
Santuário do Bom Jesus do Monte - Patrimonio Cultural
{{Authority control Roman Catholic churches completed in 1834 Baroque architecture in Portugal Roman Catholic churches in Braga Basilica churches in Portugal World Heritage Sites in Portugal 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Portugal

History

Significance

Gallery

See also

References

External links