The Capela Dourada (Portuguese for: Golden Chapel), also called Capela dos Noviços (Chapel of the Novices), is 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 ...

of the

Franciscan Order The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

located in the city of

Recife Recife ( , ) is the Federative units of Brazil, state capital of Pernambuco, Brazil, on the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of South America. It is the largest urban area within both the North Region, Brazil, North and the Northeast R ...

, capital of the Pernambuco State,

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

within the set of buildings of the Convent and Church of Santo Antônio, that includes the Church of the Ordem Terceira de São Francisco and the Franciscan Museum of Religious Art.

History and description

The construction of the chapel was the result of an initiative of the Brothers of the Venerable Third Order of St. Francis of the Chagas, created in Recife in the 16th century. Since many of its members were well-off, they decided to erect a chapel for the Order's novices. The cornerstone was launched on May 13, 1696 by Captain General Caetano de Melo Castro, being master-builder Portuguese Captain Antônio Fernandes de Matos. The chapel was opened to the public on September 15, 1697, with

mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

presided over by the Commissary Visitor Friar Jerônimo da Ressurreição, although it was not yet entirely finished, remaining the works until 1724. Built in a time of great prosperity in the region, over time the chapel received improvements and rich decoration, and its present condition dates basically of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Its name derives from the great quantity of gold used in the covering of the exuberant wood that fills practically all the spaces of the walls, altars and ceiling. Its construction and decoration was attended by several important artists in the region. The ceiling with the external arches, the croiser and the main chapel, as well as auxiliary furniture, are the work of Luís Machado, of the 17th century. The ceiling is divided into caskets for oil-painted panels with various scenes. The main chapel, with a central niche for a large crucifix and side niches for

Saints Cosmas and Damian Cosmas and Damian ( – or AD) were two Arabs, Arab physicians and early Christian martyrs. They practised their profession in the seaport of Yumurtalık, Aegeae, then in the Roman province of Cilicia (Roman province), Cilicia. Cosmas and ...

, was carved by Antônio Martins Santiago in 1698, and was gilded by Manuel de Jesus Pinto in 1799. Along the side walls there is a series of panels of

azulejo (, ; from the Arabic ) is a form of Portuguese and Spanish painted Tin-glazing, tin-glazed ceramic tilework. ''Azulejos'' are found on the interior and exterior of church (building), churches, palaces, ordinary houses, schools, and nowadays, r ...

s, smaller altars with important statues, of which stand out the one of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, the christ Cristo atado à coluna, and that of the Lord of the Steps (With a life-size rock image with inlays of rubies), and dozens of painted panels depicting saints and personifications of the

Faith Faith is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. In the context of religion, faith is " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, faith has multiple definitions, inc ...

Hope Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large. As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...

Charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...

and Constance. We sadly know that not even the archives of the Order, patiently refined, were able to advance us names of artists who had worked on these wonderful paintings. We only know that these paintings were executed between the years 1699 and 1700 and the panels of the lining between 1701 and 1702, according to the book of Receita e Despesa (excerpt taken from the Book of the Historian Fernando Pio, Former Minister of the Third Order of Saint Francis who wrote all about the Golden Chapel with research done in the collection of the Venerable Third Order of the Glorious Patriarch Saint Francis of Assisi of Recife). From 1776 to 1777 he suffered the lining of the chapel serious repair, without prejudice to the coffins, supported by careful hands, being worthy of greater attention two, large, next to the benches, representing the arrest and death of the Franciscans, whose tormentors, curiously, had their faces erased and scratched, in date unknown, by the indignation of some devotee. In the

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is us ...

there is also furniture carved in rosewood, dating to 1762, in addition to a marble table and a washbasin imported from Estremoz.

References

External links

Article on the page of the Joaquim Nabuco Foundation, by Semira Adler Vainsencher
{{coord missing, Pernambuco Religious buildings and structures in Recife Roman Catholic churches completed in 1724 Franciscan churches Roman Catholic churches in Brazil Baroque church buildings in Brazil Buildings and structures with azulejos in Brazil 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Brazil