Versão portuguesa aqui.
GPS 38.572829413662824, -7.907071232960571
The former Convent of Lóios, also known as Convent of Lóios de Évora, Convent of São João Evangelista and Pousada dos Lóios, is located in the parish of Évora (São Mamede, Sé, São Pedro and Santo Antão), in Évora.
It was built in the 15th century on what was left of the medieval castle, having been badly damaged during the 1755 earthquake. It currently houses the Pousada dos Lóios.
It has been classified as a National Monument since 1922. In 1986, the historic center of Évora, including this convent, was classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Description
It is a rectangular complex built around a two-storey cloister, with the lower floor in the Gothic-Manueline style and the upper floor with Renaissance features.
The church, in the Manueline style, has a nave with five rectangular bays and is covered by a ribbed vault. The walls are covered with tile panels from the 18th century. The chancel, with a polygonal plan, is covered by a vault of complicated design, with criss-crossed warheads, and its walls are covered with tiles from the 17th and 18th centuries.
The Chapter House, attributed to Diogo de Arruda, is preceded by a Moorish portal from the early 16th century.
On the ground floor, the mullioned portal with horseshoe arches, at the entrance to the Chapter Room, is considered a perfect example of Manueline-Mudejar regional architecture. On this door you can still see a medallion alluding to the participation of D. Rodrigo de Melo in the Battle of Azamor.
Building history
In 1487, the first count of Olivença, D. Rodrigo de Melo, Governor of Tangier and chief guard of King D. Afonso V, started the construction of this convent under the license of D. João II.
The convent was built on land where part of the Castle of Évora, of Arab origin, had been, which was completely destroyed following a great fire that consumed it during the struggles that occurred during the Crisis of 1383-1385. Contiguous to the future convent, a church was already under construction, on the initiative of the same D. Rodrigo de Melo, under the invocation of São João Evangelista and which he destined for the family pantheon. In 1491, with the work on the convent practically completed, the consecration of the church took place.
In 1498 important works were carried out extending the building to the neighboring "Colégio dos Meninos do Coro da Sé de Évora".
In the 18th century, the 1755 earthquake would further ruin the building, which was already in a state of degradation, and restoration works were then carried out, namely on the facade and bedrooms.
In 1834, with the extinction of male religious orders, it was deactivated and remained uninhabited for many years, however it is known that in 1937 it was adapted as the headquarters of the Directorate of Monuments of the South and that in 1944 it underwent works for the installation of the District Archive of Évora.
In 1957, the adaptation study for a Pousada began, which, under the project of the architect Rui Ângelo do Couto, would be inaugurated on March 27, 1963.
The inn
A adaptação a Pousada manteve praticamente intacta a estrutura original do edifício, contando esta com 31 quartos nos locais onde se situavam as antigas Celas dos Cónegos Regrantes, e duas suites mais amplas, possuindo uma delas, a "Suite presidencial", uma sala decorada com frescos.
No piso térreo encontra-se o antigo refeitório dos monges, utilizado como sala dos pequenos almoços ou sala de refeições no Inverno, bem como a antiga cozinha do convento, agora transformada numa das salas de estar da Pousada. A sala de refeições desenvolve-se em torno do claustro.
O acesso ao 1º andar faz-se por uma escadaria em mármore que permite aceder à "Sala do Império", antiga "Sala do D. Prior", revestida com pinturas murais de Francisco de Figueiredo e com retratos de personagens da Literatura e da História de Portugal bem como do fundador do convento.
A Pousada conta também com uma pequena piscina, bar e esplanada.