Evora's Bone Chapel

Today, was a warm and sunny day. Quite a contrast from yesterday, when we were almost blown away by the winds.

We stayed in town and just walked around, checking out churches and a Museum of Handicrafts and Designs housed in an old grain building.

There is so much to see here, including ... The Chapel of Bones ...

The Capela dos Ossos (Chapel of Bones) is a fascinating chapel with a very macabre feeling. It ranks as one of Evora’s most visited sites. This small, unassuming chapel is actually home to the final resting place of hundreds of bodies; all exhumed from the city’s graveyards 500 years ago.

The Chapel is part of the Igreja de Sao Francisco church complex, which is very close to the Inn that we are staying in (which is on the main square, Praca de Giraldo). The old Franciscan church is difficult to miss, as it has recently undergone a major cleaning and restoration project that has transformed it into a very clean and white building.

The main entrance to the Chapel of Bones greets visitors with a foretelling Portuguese inscription:

“We, the bones that are here, wait for yours.”

The human bones decorate every nook and cranny of the chapel’s interior. We thought that it was beautiful.
There are actually of 5,000 bones carefully cast into the cement from floor to ceiling. Skulls line the roof and walls, ‘watching’ visitors from every aspect.

Despite its appearance, the Chapel of Bones was created out of necessity and is more than just a religious curiosity. During the 16th Century, the graveyards in Evora were overcrowded so bones were exhumed to make way for new bodies to be buried. The bones were respectfully cast into the cement and housed in this place of worship. By being in a church, the bodies would be closer to God.

The restoration of the main church (1517) continues, but we were able to wander through the renovated part of the building where religious exhibits had been set up. On the upper floor, there was an interesting exhibit of 2,600 nativity scenes.

The church acquired this collection of amazing scenes from all over the world in 2015. The materials range from cork (60% of the nativity scenes are from Portugal) to iron, clay, and burlap. What a collection!

We were also able to go to the rooftop where we saw quite a different view of Evora.Læs mere