Our Lady of Health Church

Category: Religious Architecture > Church

District: Lisboa > Alenquer > Ventosa > Atalaia

Location:

The Church of Our Lady of Health is located in Atalaia, Ventosa, municipality of Alenquer, next to the road connecting Atalaia to Merceana. The small cobbled churchyard surrounds the temple, punctuated by plane trees that create variations of light and shadow throughout the day.

Its discreet visibility from the road lends it an intimate character, at a point where the rural landscape of Ribatejo blends with the urban fabric of the village.

Interior Architecture:

The interior unfolds in a simple-plan nave covered by a barrel vault. The chancel arch, made of white lioz stone, features solid bases, lateral cornices, and a pink marble keystone, highlighting the transition between the nave and the chancel.

Two niches pierce the side walls of the nave and house small images, while the altarpiece of the main altar dominates the back of the hermitage with polychrome carving from the 18th century, in shades of green, red, blue, and gold.

Artworks and Ornaments:

The main altarpiece incorporates Solomonic columns, corbels, medallions, and two angels sculpted at the pediment's finials. The gilded carving tabernacle features four twisted columns and a broken pediment, whose door displays an unusual relief: the Flagellation of Christ.

Made of upholstered and polychrome wood, the 18th-century images of Our Lady of the Conception and Saint Joseph with the Child add artistic value to the altar. In the sacristy, there are also polychrome stone sculptures attributed to the late 16th century and an 18th-century marble lavabo with an ornamented elevation.

Atmosphere and Surroundings:

In the adjoining churchyard stands a small oratory linked to the popular cult of Our Lady of Health, reinforcing the communal character of the space. The paintings and sculptures preserved there invite close observation of the details.

An old large-format panel painting (2 m × 1.45 m) depicts the Apparition of the Stag to Saint Hubert and proves to be a 17th-century historical testament, although it requires restoration to preserve its original condition.

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt