Category: Civil Architecture > Museum
District: Beja > Vidigueira > Vila de Frades > Bairro Doutor Alfredo Caetano da Silva
Situated in Bairro Doutor Alfredo Caetano da Silva, in Vila de Frades, Vidigueira municipality, the Casa do Arco Museum is set in a calm and typical Alentejo environment. Its position in one of the most characteristic areas of the locality, surrounded by buildings that mark the urban landscape of the village, contributes to its architectural uniqueness and presence in the local community.
The building that now houses the museum has a multifaceted history, reflected in its own characteristics. Initially, it functioned as a male prison establishment, and one of its most distinctive elements is the grilles on the lower floor windows, a vestige of this original phase that gives Casa do Arco a particular image within the built ensemble of the square. Throughout the 19th century, it served as the residence of a wealthy Alentejo family, known as Souto Maior. In the 20th century, between 1935 and 1937, the space hosted a delegation of Mocidade Portuguesa and, later, until the 1950s, transformed into the "Sociedade dos Altos" (Society of the High Ones). The latter was a vibrant place for festivities and gatherings for the less privileged people of the village, serving as a popular alternative to the more exclusive "Sociedade dos Ricos" (Society of the Rich), which was located nearby.
The current vocation of the Casa do Arco Museum is related to archaeology. The museum houses the permanent exhibition "A villa de S. Cucufate", dedicated to presenting the most representative materials collected during the various excavation campaigns carried out at the archaeological site of São Cucufate. The exhibition is organized by themes, which correspond to the various activities that made up the daily life of the inhabitants of that ancient Roman property. The main objective is to convey to the visitor a vivid image of the daily life of an agricultural property in Roman times, linking the exhibited objects to the lives of the men and women who inhabited those places.
In addition to its main exhibition, the Casa do Arco Museum has a small multipurpose room. This versatile space can be used for various cultural activities, from small auditoriums to temporary exhibitions, thus enriching the cultural and educational offerings of the museum and the locality of Vila de Frades.
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt
Coordinates DD: 38.2145832,-7.8260176
Coordinates DMS: 38°12'52.5"N 07°49'33.7"W
Weather Vila de Frades
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