Mateus Palace

The House of Mateus was build in the second half of the eigthenn century, the construction of this house was attributed to Nicolau Nasoni the same architect responsable for the tower of clérigos in oporto city.
The house of Mateus has attached a family chapel, built 10 years after the end of thehouse, where are buried 5 members of this nobel family, and on display a reliquary body coming from the city of the Vatican.
The author of the chapel construction, has already been attributed to a Portuguese, disciple of Nasoni, the master Alvares Rego.
Just like the house, the chapel inspire the baroque style,inside the house breathes the French style, inspiration of the time, inspired in the court of Louis XIV of France.
Inside the house you will find a restored library with 6,000 books, including the first illustrated edition of ‘’ Os Lusíadas ‘’ by Luís Vaz de Camões a famous Portuguese poet in the showcases next to the book is possible to see the copper plates used to print the illustrations inside the book.
The house of Mateus also has a magnificent garden, designed by the grandmother of the current count of the house, inspired in Versailles gardens (fashion at the time), where you can find several beds of shrubs, arches in bloom, both designed cautiously, and a cedar tunnel that makes time travel to those who pass by.
This emblematic building was always in the hands of the family, passing to an national monument in 1970

Curiousities

The statue of the naked woman exposed in the water mirror, has no meaning, was only offered to the family in an exhibition of the sculptor John Cutileiro in the house of Mateus.

It is possible take a look in the bones of a reliquary body inside the family,chappel very well preserved.

The reliquary body inside the chappel is from Marcus the martyr, a Spanish young soldier that believed in the christian feith, and as a consequence he was decapiteted by the Romans. His body was preserved and the visible head inside the showcase up the body is made of wax.

A family member who chose the religious career at Vatican city, offered the martyr to the family to more divine protection.

What is in our days the religious museum, was the bedroom for the King if in his journeys he visit the family

Inside the religious museum are exposed reliquaries from the Vatican city, which inside them, contains teeth and bones of martyred people.

The plan of the house was carefully thought so the façade offers a theatrical vision of the house. Years later with the construction of the water mirror, the illusion goes beyond the theatrical, and the main façade is now reflected in the water, hence from today be known as mirror of water the lake in front of the house.

The chapel was open to the people from the village twice a year, the day after Easter, and on the day of lady of pleasures, patroness of the village of Mateus.

The family did not have to leave the house to attend Sunday masses, because they had a connection with the chapel inside the house, where the family sat on a balcony above the village, to not mix with the others and demonstrate the social hierarchy at the time.