Category: Civil Architecture > Museum
District: Braga > Guimarães > Polvoreira > Carvalhos
The Cruzeiro do Senhor das Ânsias is located in the Carvalhos area, in the village of Polvoreira, Guimarães municipality. It is situated in a spacious and open area, right in the centre of a square that serves as a crossroads for several streets in the area. This urban location is landscaped and has lawns, inviting a moment of pause and observation in the heart of the parish.
This cruzeiro likely originated in the 18th century, being a religious structure that maintains its function to this day. Its presence once marked a point of prayer and devotion along the way, a characteristic common to many cruzeiros scattered throughout Portuguese territory.
Predominantly built from granite, the Cruzeiro do Senhor das Ânsias rests on a hexagonal base with two steps. At its centre, a prismatic plinth supports a smooth, cylindrical shaft column, crowned by a cubic capital. At the top, there is a cross with the figure of the crucified Christ, fixed by three iron nails and wearing a crown of thorns, with the index and middle fingers of the hands pointed. Interestingly, the cross still shows traces of having been painted red.
One of the most distinctive aspects of this cruzeiro is its porch, an annexed triangular-plan structure, composed of three Corinthian-style columns supporting a hip roof. The covering features architraves with trefoil arches and a stuccoed ceiling, painted in a light yellow hue. Attentive observers will notice interesting details: on the front right column, a small iron cat joins the base to the shaft, and the cruzeiro's plinth exhibits marks of a gash and holes, which once corresponded to an alms box. The shaft also retains remains of an iron piece with a padlock, which would have served to hold a lamp, elements that attest to its use and symbolism throughout the centuries.
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt
Coordinates DD: 41.411616,-8.3017331
Coordinates DMS: 41°24'41.8"N 08°18'6.2"W
Weather Polvoreira
On-duty Pharmacy Polvoreira
