Saturday, October 26, 2019 Lisbon
Today we begin our official American Institute of Architects tour of Portugal and southern Spain, with an overview of Lisbon's architecture. We had a delightful dinner last night at the hotel, after an orientation and a time to meet our group of 25.
We are traveling via motor coach, so we began with a drive around some of the major sections of the city, after a morning overview lecture by our architectural content expert, Elizabeth Emerson.
Much of the architecture in the lower part of Lisbon, in the Baixa Pombalina, has a similar majestic look to the buildings lining the large, main avenidas. That's because in 1755 Lisbon suffered a terrible earthquake, followed by a tsunami and fires, which destroyed 80% of the city and killed 20% of it's population.
The central, lower district of the city was completely rebuilt under the direction of the Marquis of Pombal (hence the name Baixa Pombalina) - and the architectural style is named after him as well.
The royal palace that stood on the banks of the Tagus (Tejo) River was destroying in the earthquake. It was rebuilt as a large commercial square - the Praca do Comercio.
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| Typical building post 1748 earthquake -commercial arcade on first floor with 3 or 4 stories for living/work above |
Today we begin our official American Institute of Architects tour of Portugal and southern Spain, with an overview of Lisbon's architecture. We had a delightful dinner last night at the hotel, after an orientation and a time to meet our group of 25.
We are traveling via motor coach, so we began with a drive around some of the major sections of the city, after a morning overview lecture by our architectural content expert, Elizabeth Emerson.
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| Monument to the Fallen of the Great War (WWI) - Avenida da Liberdade |
Much of the architecture in the lower part of Lisbon, in the Baixa Pombalina, has a similar majestic look to the buildings lining the large, main avenidas. That's because in 1755 Lisbon suffered a terrible earthquake, followed by a tsunami and fires, which destroyed 80% of the city and killed 20% of it's population.
The central, lower district of the city was completely rebuilt under the direction of the Marquis of Pombal (hence the name Baixa Pombalina) - and the architectural style is named after him as well.
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| The Rossio is a beautiful large open plaza, lined with majestic buildings, stores, cafes and central fountains & statues |
The royal palace that stood on the banks of the Tagus (Tejo) River was destroying in the earthquake. It was rebuilt as a large commercial square - the Praca do Comercio.
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Morning at the Praca do Comercio on the Tagus River and the statue of King Jose I, on the site of the former royal palace Lisbon's tile facades
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