Basilica of Nazare

The basilica was built between 1909 and 1926 on the model of the church of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, with imported marble, mosaic and stained glass paid for largely by rubber money, and it holds a small image of Our Lady of Nazareth said to have been found by a settler in the eighteenth century. What matters here is the fortnight in October: the Cirio de Nazare brings something in the order of two million people onto the streets of Belem behind the image, with the rope that pilgrims grip along the route becoming the central object of devotion, and the procession was inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage list in 2013. Outside that period the basilica is quiet, and a museum below it explains the festival.

What you actually see

• A Roman model - built 1909 to 1926 after Saint Paul Outside the Walls.
• The Cirio image - the small statue carried at the centre of the procession.
• The rope - the object pilgrims grip along the route each October.
• The Cirio museum - the festival explained below the church.

When to go

October for the Cirio, if you want the event; any time otherwise. An hour.

Honest expectations

During the Cirio the city is effectively full and accommodation must be booked months ahead; crowds are dense and movement is slow. Outside October the basilica is a handsome but ordinary church, and the museum carries most of the interest.

Nearby

The Cidade Velha and Ver-o-Peso are toward the waterfront; the Mangal das Garcas is south.