Secrets Tips: Here’s Why Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte in Braga Is On The UNESCO’s World Heritage List ♦ This cultural landscape located on the slopes of Mount Espinho overlooking the city of Braga in the north of Portugal, evokes Christian Jerusalem, recreating a sacred mount crowned with a church. The granite buildings have whitewashed plaster façades, framed by exposed stonework. The celebrated Stairway of the Five Senses, with its walls, steps, fountains, statues and other ornamental elements, is the most emblematic Baroque work within the property. Sanctuary Of Bom Jesus do Monte In Braga is a mist go place in the country, and today, Secrets From Portugal is here to let you know why.
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The Bom Jesus is a renowned tourist spot and is also a happy place in the memory of Bracarans. For an even more exciting visit, use the lift – moved by water – to get to the church zone. In addition to being the first funicular railway built in the Iberian Peninsula, this lift that crosses the hill is now the oldest in service to use this system of water balance.
The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte (also known as Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Braga) is located in the parish of Tenões, in the city, county and district of Braga, in Portugal. It is located near the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sameiro. This Catholic sanctuary dedicated to Senhor Bom Jesus is an architectural-landscape complex composed of a church, a staircase where the Sacred Way of Bom Jesus is developed, a forest area (Bom Jesus Park), some hotels and a funicular ( Bom Jesus Lift). It was elevated to the minor basilica on July 5, 2015.
Its peculiar disposition was the inspiration for other constructions, such as the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Remedies in Lamego and the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos in the city of Congonhas in Minas Gerais, Brazil. It is classified as a National Monument and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This basilica was designed by the architect Carlos Amarante, by order of the then Archbishop of Braga, D. Gaspar de Bragança, to replace the previous church, erected by D. Rodrigo de Moura Teles. His works began on June 1, 1784, and were completed in 1811.
The churchyard, also designed by Amarante, features eight statues representing characters who intervened in the condemnation, passion and death of Christ. The basilica is planted in the shape of a Latin cross, constituting one of the first neoclassical buildings in the country. Its façade is flanked by two towers, surmounted by a triangular pediment.
When you reach the top, be enchanted by the view over the city and after enjoying the details of the rich decoration of the church, be sure to explore the whole environment where the Sanctuary is inserted. Do you know the expression “to see Braga by a straw”? The “straw” – which is, in fact, a monocle – is in Bom Jesus and gives you an even more detailed view of Braga.
Find the gentleman of the horse where still black and white photographs are taken with the help of an old machine, explore the cave, throw a coin into the water and make a wish, rowing the lake (and , go under the bridge, do not hang up – lots of people fell into the water thanks to such a joke!), take a cart ride or opt for a picnic in the picnic park. Bom Jesus do Monte is a religious space, but it is also a romantic and convivial place, where Bracarans practice sports and enjoy the sunny days. Nature is privileged and protected with affection and your passage through Braga will not be complete without a visit to this area so popular with Brabantans and tourists.
