The Benedictine Monastery of São Miguel de Refojos is characterized by its beauty, grandeur and tranquility and was, for a long time, chosen by Monks to carry out their Monastic Life.
Considered the Jewel of the Portuguese Baroque in Terras de Basto, the statues of the founder of the order of S. Bento de Núrcia and his sister Santa Escolástica stand out.
The fundamental characteristics of its architecture highlight the Perfect Symmetry and the Curves and Countercurves.
This monument is classified as a Property of Public Interest (Decree No. 23 011, DG 197, of 31 August 1933).
The Monastery of São Miguel de Refojos is a living testament to the civilizing importance of the Benedictine order in Portugal, Europe and Brazil. Exceptional testimony of the dynamics and struggles in the historical period of the founding of Portugal and the reconquest period. The Letter of Couto of D. Afonso Henriques, even before he became the first king of Portugal (1131), is highlighted, confirmed by all the monarchs who succeeded him in the Portuguese Crown until the first half of the 19th century.
To this Monastery are linked some names of important writers such as Camilo Castelo Branco and Sá da Bandeira, from Santos, nobles and warriors such as Nuno Álvares Pereira or Gueda Mendes, the noble knight close to D: Afonso Henriques, who ordered a chalice of gilded silver, in 1152, a masterpiece of Romanesque goldsmithing Classified as a National Treasure.
Considered the Jewel of the Portuguese Baroque in Terras de Basto, the statues of the founder of the order of S. Bento de Núrcia and his sister Santa Escolástica stand out.
Of all the Unique Architectural Design and Full of Detail that can be observed in the Monastery of São Miguel de Refojos, the following stand out:
– The demonic figures, masks, also known as frowns, placed on the two interior sides, right after the entrance to the church;
– The double organ on the sides, one of which is mute (the real organ was recovered in 2009, a true relic at national level, having been providing excellent concerts of classical and modern music);
– The two pulpits in partially gilded brown;
-The Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, in golden brown;
-The main altar in gilded carving;
-The High Choir consisting of 45 U-shaped seats;
It has a cloister, the central area of the building that allowed the exterior movement between the various dependencies of the Monastery, which served not only the interior of the church but also the exterior. The only one with a dome and dome, it has a Latin cross plan and two towers, being all symmetrical with a core of sacred art inside, with sacristy and ante-sacristy.
Source: https://cabeceirasdebasto.pt/turismo-patrimonio-cultural