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Portugal

Amateur film documenting architectural and historic sites in and around the city of Lisbon, Portugal, dating from 1963.

Amateur film 1963 7 mins Silent

Overview

Filmed by British traveller and diplomat Clarmont Skrine in Portugal recording the ornate sixteenth century monastery at Jerónimos, with its intricately carved cloisters, the statue of Cristo-Rei on the south bank of the River Tagus and the Torre de Belém, built as a defence for the city, marking the discoveries made during the Portuguese exploration of Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries.

The film also captures the world heritage site of the Palácio Nacional de Sintra on the Lisbon coast, recognized by its giant conical chimneys, and inland, the Pena Palace, high above the pine covered hills of the Serra de Sintra, the ancient stone walls of the Moors Palace and the eighteenth century Seteais Palace, built for the Dutch consul, Daniel Gildemeester, and linked by an ornate arch created in 1802 to honour Prince Regent of Portugal, John VI and Princess Carlota Joaquina.