ORION is a digital art history research-oriented project focused on the study of art collections ... more ORION is a digital art history research-oriented project focused on the study of art collections and collectors in Portugal, supported on a relational database management system. Besides the obvious advantage of organizing and systematizing an enormous amount of information, promoting its analysis, this database was specifically designed to highlight the relationships between data. Its relational capacity is not only one of the most relevant features of ORION, but a differentiating quality, one step forward in comparison to other international databases and studies that use digital methodologies. This article discusses the methods and the advantages of using ORION in research related to the history of collecting, art markets and provenance of art objects in Portugal, where it is the very first time that an approach such as this is intended, looking for a systematization of data that paves the way to the emergence of new research questions. Furthermore, and because ORION aims to shar...
The Monastery of Batalha is one of the most important Gothic monuments in Portugal. In the 19th c... more The Monastery of Batalha is one of the most important Gothic monuments in Portugal. In the 19th century, between 1840 and 1900, it underwent extensive restoration work which significantly altered its features, as well as the memories of past monastic experiences. Despite the magnitude of the intervention, the work that transformed the former Dominican monastery into a historical monument of the Nation, was, however, subject to an exemplary, scrupulous and detailed work and management methodology. This was reflected in the production of an unprecedented documentary collection (textual, iconographic, object-based), mainly archived within the monument itself, thus allowing for a highly accurate reconstruction of the work conducted and an understanding of the criteria followed. By means of an integrated perspective, this study seeks to highlight these important historical sources, with particular emphasis on: their unique character in the context of the archives of Portuguese monuments; their role in the study of the restoration work on the Monastery of Batalha and in the history of monument restoration in Portugal in general; and the potential for interdisciplinary research that can be derived thereof, involving the latest technological trends.
The main goal of the present article is to study the cleaning and consolidation of the marble faç... more The main goal of the present article is to study the cleaning and consolidation of the marble façade of the Ducal Palace of Vila Viçosa during the 1940s. The research was based on the archival documentation of the former Directorate-General for National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN), which was crucial for uncovering the history and theory of conservation and restoration of monuments in Portugal since 1929, and allowed to identify protagonists as well as techniques, materials, and intervention criteria. The analysis of the choices that were madebased on principles such as minimal intervention, respect for the history of the monument through its various phases, and preservation of the patina of timedemonstrates that there was an obvious regard for the principles established by the Athens Charter (1931). Such principles are evidence of a departure from the DGEMN action paradigms at the time, which favoured restoration over conservation and defended the prevalence of a "style unity", while sacrificing certain eras of the monuments' past.
Heritage conservation and cultural tourism are central features of academic debates, as this rela... more Heritage conservation and cultural tourism are central features of academic debates, as this relationship has not been always peaceful. This paper seeks to evaluate the correlation between the extensive conservation and restoration of the wall and castle of the medieval town of Óbidos (1930–1950) and the tourism-oriented projects developed since this period. Due to the criticism of several previous studies, one of the primary aims of this research was to assess whether this Portuguese town constitutes a good example of medieval reconstitution, or if it is a fanciful twentieth-century intervention. Another main goal was to establish our position regarding the challenges inherent to the management of this historic centre, especially those concerning current tourism challenges and the preservation of and regard for historical buildings and monuments. By means of a long-term study based on the common history of art methodology (cross-analysis of bibliography, archival research, in situ observation of the heritage and attendance of festivals and events), we were able to make the following contributions to advance the debate: although the earlier interventions in Óbidos abided by strict criteria which merited international praise, the management model of the town as a tourist destination over the last two decades calls for a revaluation, placing greater importance on history, historic and artistic heritage and the identity of the location.
A Conferência Internacional de Museus que teve lugar em Madrid, em 1934, representou um marco dec... more A Conferência Internacional de Museus que teve lugar em Madrid, em 1934, representou um marco decisivo na afirmação do museu moderno desejado para o século XX. Ali se trataram, pela voz dos mais conceituados especialistas internacionais, múltiplas problemáticas relacionadas com a museografia e com a arquitetura de museus. Neste estudo, colocamos o enfoque nas questões ligadas ao âmbito da conservação preventiva, cujo termo apenas seria formalmente estabelecido, em 1978, por Garry Thomson. Integrar a Conferência de Madrid na perspetiva histórica da conservação preventiva é um dos contributos deste trabalho, bem como avaliar, através de documentação arquivística, os seus efeitos sobre o projeto de ampliação do Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, em Lisboa, então em elaboração. Instalado num palácio seiscentista, o histórico museu que o seu diretor desejava moderno, tornou-se num importante caso de estudo para a museologia, museografia e arquitetura museal da época, com repercussões interna...
The ornamental stones used in the construction of the Basilica of Fátima (built between 1928 and ... more The ornamental stones used in the construction of the Basilica of Fátima (built between 1928 and 1954) are a carefully selected visible material that dominates both the architecture and the sculpture of the building. These rocks came from various locations and suppliers in Portugal. Using an interdisciplinary methodology that combines analysis of historical records with macroscopic analysis of the ornamental stones, it was possible to identify a great variety of stones from the regions of Pêro Pinheiro-Sintra and the Estremoz Anticline, as well as from Fátima quarries. In this paper, several varieties of white, pink, and dark marbles from the Estremoz Anticline in Alentejo that were used within the Basilica are identified. The criteria that were used in their selection for application in some of the most important parts of this building are discussed. The interdisciplinary methodological approach employed here may support decision-making for conservation and restoration work in the future.
This paper aims to analyse the conversion of the former Desterro Hospital, in Lisbon, the capital... more This paper aims to analyse the conversion of the former Desterro Hospital, in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, both throughout its history and regarding its recent transformation into an innovative project with touristic and cultural purposes. Dating back to 1591, the then Desterro Monastery was transformed into a hospital in 1848, after the extinction of religious orders in Portugal. It kept these hospital functions until 2007, when the Portuguese state decided to close it and to sell the building. The project of comprehensive rehabilitation of the former monastery intended to create a new point of interest in the city of Lisbon, a mix-used building for both locals and foreigners. The restoration project conforms to the historic building, adapting it to present-day requirements. This raises questions on the preservation and identity, also taking into consideration key aspects in terms of sustainability. This paper intends to analyse this case study as an example of maintenance and restoration of a historic building which served various purposes related to religion and healthcare, and which is now starting a "new life", while evaluating such project within the scope of sustainable tourism.
ORION is a digital art history research-oriented project focused on the study of art collections ... more ORION is a digital art history research-oriented project focused on the study of art collections and collectors in Portugal, supported on a relational database management system. Besides the obvious advantage of organizing and systematizing an enormous amount of information, promoting its analysis, this database was specifically designed to highlight the relationships between data. Its relational capacity is not only one of the most relevant features of ORION, but a differentiating quality, one step forward in comparison to other international databases and studies that use digital methodologies. This article discusses the methods and the advantages of using ORION in research related to the history of collecting, art markets and provenance of art objects in Portugal, where it is the very first time that an approach such as this is intended, looking for a systematization of data that paves the way to the emergence of new research questions. Furthermore, and because ORION aims to shar...
The Monastery of Batalha is one of the most important Gothic monuments in Portugal. In the 19th c... more The Monastery of Batalha is one of the most important Gothic monuments in Portugal. In the 19th century, between 1840 and 1900, it underwent extensive restoration work which significantly altered its features, as well as the memories of past monastic experiences. Despite the magnitude of the intervention, the work that transformed the former Dominican monastery into a historical monument of the Nation, was, however, subject to an exemplary, scrupulous and detailed work and management methodology. This was reflected in the production of an unprecedented documentary collection (textual, iconographic, object-based), mainly archived within the monument itself, thus allowing for a highly accurate reconstruction of the work conducted and an understanding of the criteria followed. By means of an integrated perspective, this study seeks to highlight these important historical sources, with particular emphasis on: their unique character in the context of the archives of Portuguese monuments; their role in the study of the restoration work on the Monastery of Batalha and in the history of monument restoration in Portugal in general; and the potential for interdisciplinary research that can be derived thereof, involving the latest technological trends.
The main goal of the present article is to study the cleaning and consolidation of the marble faç... more The main goal of the present article is to study the cleaning and consolidation of the marble façade of the Ducal Palace of Vila Viçosa during the 1940s. The research was based on the archival documentation of the former Directorate-General for National Buildings and Monuments (DGEMN), which was crucial for uncovering the history and theory of conservation and restoration of monuments in Portugal since 1929, and allowed to identify protagonists as well as techniques, materials, and intervention criteria. The analysis of the choices that were madebased on principles such as minimal intervention, respect for the history of the monument through its various phases, and preservation of the patina of timedemonstrates that there was an obvious regard for the principles established by the Athens Charter (1931). Such principles are evidence of a departure from the DGEMN action paradigms at the time, which favoured restoration over conservation and defended the prevalence of a "style unity", while sacrificing certain eras of the monuments' past.
Heritage conservation and cultural tourism are central features of academic debates, as this rela... more Heritage conservation and cultural tourism are central features of academic debates, as this relationship has not been always peaceful. This paper seeks to evaluate the correlation between the extensive conservation and restoration of the wall and castle of the medieval town of Óbidos (1930–1950) and the tourism-oriented projects developed since this period. Due to the criticism of several previous studies, one of the primary aims of this research was to assess whether this Portuguese town constitutes a good example of medieval reconstitution, or if it is a fanciful twentieth-century intervention. Another main goal was to establish our position regarding the challenges inherent to the management of this historic centre, especially those concerning current tourism challenges and the preservation of and regard for historical buildings and monuments. By means of a long-term study based on the common history of art methodology (cross-analysis of bibliography, archival research, in situ observation of the heritage and attendance of festivals and events), we were able to make the following contributions to advance the debate: although the earlier interventions in Óbidos abided by strict criteria which merited international praise, the management model of the town as a tourist destination over the last two decades calls for a revaluation, placing greater importance on history, historic and artistic heritage and the identity of the location.
A Conferência Internacional de Museus que teve lugar em Madrid, em 1934, representou um marco dec... more A Conferência Internacional de Museus que teve lugar em Madrid, em 1934, representou um marco decisivo na afirmação do museu moderno desejado para o século XX. Ali se trataram, pela voz dos mais conceituados especialistas internacionais, múltiplas problemáticas relacionadas com a museografia e com a arquitetura de museus. Neste estudo, colocamos o enfoque nas questões ligadas ao âmbito da conservação preventiva, cujo termo apenas seria formalmente estabelecido, em 1978, por Garry Thomson. Integrar a Conferência de Madrid na perspetiva histórica da conservação preventiva é um dos contributos deste trabalho, bem como avaliar, através de documentação arquivística, os seus efeitos sobre o projeto de ampliação do Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, em Lisboa, então em elaboração. Instalado num palácio seiscentista, o histórico museu que o seu diretor desejava moderno, tornou-se num importante caso de estudo para a museologia, museografia e arquitetura museal da época, com repercussões interna...
The ornamental stones used in the construction of the Basilica of Fátima (built between 1928 and ... more The ornamental stones used in the construction of the Basilica of Fátima (built between 1928 and 1954) are a carefully selected visible material that dominates both the architecture and the sculpture of the building. These rocks came from various locations and suppliers in Portugal. Using an interdisciplinary methodology that combines analysis of historical records with macroscopic analysis of the ornamental stones, it was possible to identify a great variety of stones from the regions of Pêro Pinheiro-Sintra and the Estremoz Anticline, as well as from Fátima quarries. In this paper, several varieties of white, pink, and dark marbles from the Estremoz Anticline in Alentejo that were used within the Basilica are identified. The criteria that were used in their selection for application in some of the most important parts of this building are discussed. The interdisciplinary methodological approach employed here may support decision-making for conservation and restoration work in the future.
This paper aims to analyse the conversion of the former Desterro Hospital, in Lisbon, the capital... more This paper aims to analyse the conversion of the former Desterro Hospital, in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, both throughout its history and regarding its recent transformation into an innovative project with touristic and cultural purposes. Dating back to 1591, the then Desterro Monastery was transformed into a hospital in 1848, after the extinction of religious orders in Portugal. It kept these hospital functions until 2007, when the Portuguese state decided to close it and to sell the building. The project of comprehensive rehabilitation of the former monastery intended to create a new point of interest in the city of Lisbon, a mix-used building for both locals and foreigners. The restoration project conforms to the historic building, adapting it to present-day requirements. This raises questions on the preservation and identity, also taking into consideration key aspects in terms of sustainability. This paper intends to analyse this case study as an example of maintenance and restoration of a historic building which served various purposes related to religion and healthcare, and which is now starting a "new life", while evaluating such project within the scope of sustainable tourism.
O poder das imagens no trabalho de historiadores da arte, museólogos, conservadores-restauradores... more O poder das imagens no trabalho de historiadores da arte, museólogos, conservadores-restauradores, colecionadores ou mesmo de antiquários e outros agentes do mercado de arte, essencial ao serviço de um método comparativo, mas também como documento de prova, ganha uma nova dimensão com o surgimento da fotografia. Ciente das suas potencialidades, o crítico de arte e museólogo José de Figueiredo (1872-1937) irá, deste logo, fazer uso do novo recurso para desenvolver e fundamentar as suas investigações, assim como para estimular o debate em torno da arte e do património nacionais. É, porém, no âmbito do Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga (MNAA), quando assume a sua direção, em 1911, que a fotografia se afirmará, não apenas como importante ferramenta operativa da história da arte e da museologia, possibilitando comparações, estudos à distância, completar inventários ou divulgar coleções, mas como instrumento da conservação e restauro, facultando elementos de prova, detalhes técnicos e/ou artísticos que, através de diferentes radiações do espectro eletromagnético, permitem, mesmo, alcançar o invisível. A constituição de um singular arquivo fotográfico de arte, a par de uma biblioteca especializada, e, mais tarde, a construção de um laboratório de fotografia e de uma oficina de restauro junto das coleções, ocuparam, assim, lugar de destaque no projeto museológico de Figueiredo, para cuja concretização se fez circundar dos mais distintos profissionais e guiar pelos que considerava serem os melhores e mais modernos exemplos europeus.
O ano de 2016 concentrou a celebração de três efemérides em torno da Igreja de Santa Engrácia-Pan... more O ano de 2016 concentrou a celebração de três efemérides em torno da Igreja de Santa Engrácia-Panteão Nacional: os 180 anos da instituição do Panteão Nacional, em 1836; os 100 anos da consagração da inacabada igreja de Santa Engrácia como Panteão Nacional, em 1916; e os 50 anos da conclusão desta igreja e da inauguração do Panteão de Heróis Nacionais, em 1966. O estudo agora apresentado resulta da pesquisa realizada por ocasião da exposição Reis e Heróis-Os Panteões em Portugal, comemorativa das efemérides referidas, patente ao público no Panteão Nacional, entre 13 de dezembro de 2016 e 7 de maio de 2017. A presente publicação aglutina ainda anteriores trabalhos que as autoras têm vindo a dedicar aos temas dos panteões régios e dos "templos da fama", destinados a homenagear os heróis da Pátria, agora revistos, aumentados e integrados.
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Ciente das suas potencialidades, o crítico de arte e museólogo José de Figueiredo (1872-1937) irá, deste logo, fazer uso do novo recurso para desenvolver e fundamentar as suas investigações, assim como para estimular o debate em torno da arte e do património nacionais. É, porém, no âmbito do Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga (MNAA), quando assume a sua direção, em 1911, que a fotografia se afirmará, não apenas como importante ferramenta operativa da história da arte e da museologia, possibilitando comparações, estudos à distância, completar inventários ou divulgar coleções, mas como instrumento da conservação e restauro, facultando elementos de prova, detalhes técnicos e/ou artísticos que, através de diferentes radiações do espectro eletromagnético, permitem, mesmo, alcançar o invisível.
A constituição de um singular arquivo fotográfico de arte, a par de uma biblioteca especializada, e, mais tarde, a construção de um laboratório de fotografia e de uma oficina de restauro junto das coleções, ocuparam, assim, lugar de destaque no projeto museológico de Figueiredo, para cuja concretização se fez circundar dos mais distintos profissionais e guiar pelos que considerava serem os melhores e mais modernos exemplos europeus.