Padrão dos Descobrimentos

The Padrão was built in 1960 for the five-hundredth anniversary of Henry the Navigator's death, replacing a temporary version from the 1940 Exhibition of the Portuguese World. It is fifty-two metres of concrete and limestone shaped as a stylised caravel prow, with Henry at the head and thirty-two figures behind him - navigators, cartographers, missionaries, chroniclers, Camões, and Queen Philippa - all facing the river. It presents the voyages in the heroic, celebratory manner of its time. A lift and stairs go to a viewing platform at the top, over the compass rose laid in the pavement below, a gift from South Africa in 1960.

History

José Ângelo Cottinelli Telmo and the sculptor Leopoldo de Almeida conceived the monument in 1939 as a temporary beacon for the Portuguese World Exhibition, which opened in June 1940. A permanent version was decreed on 3 February 1958 and built between November 1958 and January 1960 in concrete and rose-tinted stone from Leiria, it was inaugurated on 9 August 1960 for the anniversary of Henry the Navigator's death, and a cultural centre opened inside it in 1985 (Wikipedia, Monument of the Discoveries).

Highlights

• The prow - fifty-two metres of stone and concrete with thirty-two figures.
• The viewing platform - a lift and stairs to the top, over the river and Belém.
• The compass rose - the pavement mosaic below, given by South Africa in 1960.
• The riverside setting - facing the Tagus where the ships once set out.

When to go

Year-round. One hour including the platform. Queues build through the day; go early. Closed on some Mondays.

Practical notes

Long queues for the lift in season. Belém as a whole is extremely crowded. The waterfront is exposed and windy.

Nearby

The Jerónimos monastery is across the road; the Belém tower is a walk west.

Key facts