Crop of Portugal

Throughout all history of the Portuguese state the various people formed cultural shape of the country. Romans, the German nations, Arabs and moors, Spaniards and Portugueses have abandoned remarkable architectural creations and cultural traditions. The Portuguese tongue, for example, has educed from demotic Latin and assemblage of the Arabian concepts.

  Different historical destinies of northern and southern parts of the country îïðåäåëèëè  cultural features of each of them. Dwellings in the south are whitewashed by lime, is frequent with yellow or a dark blue fringing which should distil off evil ghosts; roofs - tile. Dwellings of consistent inhabitants - two-storeyed, their obligatory fitting - balconies and the closed intrinsic court yard (patio). A grey granite and corrugated asbestos board In the north predominate. Feature of Portugal - agricultural feudal farms (kintash), surrounded with magnificent gardens. The majority of such farms are had in neighbourhoods of Lisbon and in the north, in vineyards of Douro and Mino.

The Portuguese cities - very old. Many of them have originated at-sight settlements in domination of Romans or still earlier. In a southern part of the country ruins of the Roman temples and aqueducts also were until now saved. In small town Evora (a monument of world crop), generated under the influence Romans, moors and medieval Portuguese kings, besides
dazzling churches, monasteries and Mauritian palaces knock remains of the Roman temple of Diana with 14 corinthian granite columns. And in several kilometres from small town Santiago-de-Kasenu the keltsko-Roman settlement is dug out. The ancient roadway, the Roman road of legionaries connecting Lisbon with a city the Span, leads to remains of the ancient Roman city of Konimbriga (is in 16  km from modern Coimbra). The specimen of comfort of the Roman settlement is shown by magnificent inlaid floors, private baths with warmed basins and floors, and also the redesigned garden yard with a spout.

In different parts of the country from times Rekonkisty and the Golden Age of the Portuguese colonialism the assemblage of locks of the feudal lords builted of aboriginal stuffs - a granite and a chalkstone was saved.

The Middle Ages penetrated by spirit of serf architecture, have abandoned assemblage of gothic monasteries XII-XIV of the centuries deprived of ornamental splendour in the country. Vivid examples of this style - an old cathedral church in campus Coimbra, and also being near to Coimbra powerful rannegotichesky monastery Alkobasa which is till XVIII century the spiritual centre of the country.

Vjana-du-Kashtelu - one of the most perfect small ancient small towns where it is possible to admire architecture of the Renaissance and the special Portuguese style manuelino. This style has originated on the basis of a combination of a tertiary gothic, is arabesque-naturalistic details (shells, corals, ship ropes) and Mauritian and even the Indian motives (lotus knops, east ornaments), the seafarers cast by stories about the long-range countries. The best samples of this style can be seen in Lisbon (monastery Ieronemitov) and in the city of Tomar (a monastery of Christ's Knights). Dazzling product of the Portuguese gothic and style manuelino - monastery Batalja (it is had near to Lisbon) which despite mixture of various styles is extraordinary beautiful, original architectural structure let upwards. Here there is a tomb of prince Henry Moreplavatelja who has played in the beginning of XV century a huge role in metamorphosis of Portugal in the largest colonial power.

In 20  the km from the city of Sintra costs the giant monastic lock Mafra executed in baroque style, - a symbol of royal squandering of XVII century. King Zhuan V in honour of a birth of the fellow-heir has decided to carry out ambitious dream - to eclipse Spanish Eskurial. Behind a principal front of the lock in length 220  m it is had 880  rooms.

Many buildings of cities of Portugal are faced by colour ceramic tiles (azulezhu). Art of manufacturing of ceramic ceramic tiles was brought to Portugal by Arabs. The surface of ceramic tiles is relief, the ornament by Islamic tradition consisted in the core of spiders. Subsequently at Italians the technique of a majolica with drawing of paints on a flat surface has been adopted. Colour of a list and motives varied from a century by a century. Quantity production has begun with the middle of XIX century azulezhu. They decorated not only palaces and churches, but also walls of the diversified constructions. To see frequent on fronts of dwellings it is possible the whole pictures on biblical and other plots. Velikolepnejshy the ancient sample of this art - a palace I Tend Real in Sintre.

In Portugal exists two most well-known sacred places where numerous pilgrims are drained off. Both are had in northern part of the country. It is the city Fatima which has become famous for the wonderful phenomena, 13 numbers of each month descending here in 1917. As a result on this place the pilgrim church has been builted. Other widely known place - church of the Christ on Golgotha (is in 5 km from the Span): to a temple standing on a mountain terrace (564 , the ladder of improbable length on which some pilgrims climb up upwards in a lap conducts.

Bright originality the arts and crafts of the Portugal which have originated still in XV-XVI centuries (furniture, carpets, cloths, woodcarving, jewels from gold and silver) differ.

The Portuguese national songs and music are original and considerably differ from the Spanish. Lyrical tunes among which the form fadu is passed especially round pesennaja predominate. It is the melancholic song combining elements Mauritian fatalizma and a knightly romance, about inseparability of love and grief.