Sto Antão do Tojal Garden

Category: Nature > Garden

District: Lisboa > Loures > Santo Antão do Tojal > Quinta do Aqueduto

Location

The Garden of Santo Antão do Tojal is located in the town of Santo Antão do Tojal, belonging to the municipality of Loures. It is situated in the area known as Quinta do Aqueduto, an area characterized by the transition between urban and rural environments, located on the northern edge of the Várzea de Loures. This plain landscape, with historically fertile soils, was shaped by a lasting agricultural tradition.

The garden constitutes a fundamental part of a vast Baroque monumental complex, which also includes the Palace of the Archbishops, the Mother Church, and the Monumental Fountain. This setting gives it a distinct historical and architectural context, reflecting the grandeur of its conception in the 18th century.

A Baroque Legacy

The history of the Garden of Santo Antão do Tojal began in the 18th century, when it was designed as an integral part of the summer residence of the Archbishops and, later, of the Patriarchs of Lisbon. Its creation was driven by D. Tomás de Almeida, the first Patriarch of Lisbon, between the years 1728 and 1732. The project was entrusted to the Italian architect Antonio Canevari, whose influence is evident in Baroque architecture in Portugal.

This green space was conceived for display and leisure, serving as a stage for receptions of prominent figures of the time. A record by William Beckford, dated 1794, describes it as a place of "immense parterres, richly carpeted with yellow and red flowers, reminiscent of a Turkish carpet," an image that evokes its original sumptuosity and its role as a place of admiration and delight.

Landscape and Ornamentation Elements

Although the Garden of Santo Antão do Tojal has undergone various transformations over the centuries, elements that bear witness to its former magnificence can still be appreciated today. Its structure, which once included production and recreational areas, retains the main avenue, bordered by low walls that integrate decorative tile panels with floral motifs and curved stone benches, inviting rest.

As one wanders through the garden, other avenues are discovered that interconnect with water tanks and peculiar dovecotes, which punctuate the extremities of the space. A stone watering can, visible in one of the avenues, serves as a vestige of the ingenious hydraulic system that once supplied the garden and its water features.

Tile Art and Sculpture

The artistic details constitute one of the most distinctive features of this garden. The two circular dovecotes, located in the more remote area, are notable for their architecture and rich decoration in blue and yellow tiles, displaying vegetal elements, floral garlands, foliage, and medallions with busts.

One of the backrest benches, near the southern dovecote, offers a privileged perspective of the garden, with its back adorned with a panel of polychrome tiles representing the season of Spring. Another bench features figurative tiles of Saint Anthony with the Child Jesus, enriching the visitor's visual experience. The square-profile tanks, although currently without water, retain beautiful blue and white tiles, with designs of garlands and floral pendents, revealing the meticulous attention to decorative elements that characterized this historic garden.

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