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🎬 Introduction

The silhouettes of the Carmelite churches, Igreja dos Carmelitas and Igreja do Carmo, standing wall to wall, give the impression of a single entity. Many tourists are surprised to discover that they are, in fact, separate buildings. Not only were they built at different times, but they were once divided by a narrow street, now replaced by the Hidden House of Porto, the narrowest house in the city.

We aim to highlight how beautiful both churches are and share a bit about their history in the text and video below.

The first of the churches, Igreja dos Carmelitas, was built for the Discalced Carmelite Brothers, while the second, Igreja do Carmo, was constructed for the Third Order Brothers. On May 3, 2013, both buildings were designated as national monuments.

⛪Carmelite Church

The older of the two buildings, with a much simpler facade, is the Discalced Carmelite Church. Permission for its construction was granted by King Philip II of Portugal, who also ruled Spain as Philip III Habsburg. The church was built between 1616 and 1628, serving as the monastic church for the nearby monastery complex. Today, the building of the now-defunct monastery is occupied by the National Republican Guard.

The church facade is made of granite stone, featuring three portals with round arches, each topped with a niche housing a statue: centrally, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, with St. Joseph and St. Teresa of Jesus on either side. The upper part of the facade has three windows, above which is a triangular pediment. To the left of the church stands a beautiful bell tower, decorated with azulejos and topped with a dome shaped like a bulb.

The interior of the church is single-naved, in the shape of a Latin cross, with six side chapels and a vestibule at the entrance. The decor includes numerous embellishments in the talha dourada technique, in Baroque and Rococo styles. The main altar was crafted by Jose Teixeira Guimaraes. Adding to the church’s charm is a white ceiling with subtle Baroque decorations, beautifully illuminated by natural light from the upper windows.

🏠Hidden House of Porto

The Casa Escondida, a three-story house just over a meter wide, accommodates a living room, bedroom, study, and even a kitchen across its floors. It filled the impractical gap between the walls of Igreja dos Carmelitas and Igreja do Carmo, resulting from legal regulations that prohibited two churches from sharing a wall. An intriguing rumor suggested that the lack of a common wall prevented any interaction between the nuns and monks.

The house was once used as a residence for chaplains and artists working on the interior and facade decorations of the churches, as well as for doctors from the nearby hospital. Today, it is part of the tour route for the newer Carmelite church.

⛪Igreja do Carmo

The Church of the Venerable Third Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was built in the second half of the 18th century in a Baroque-Rococo style, designed by architect José Figueiredo Seixas.

The church was constructed on land adjacent to the Carmelite church to the west, donated to the order in 1752. The patroness of the church is Saint Anne (mother of Mary, grandmother of Jesus), who was especially venerated by the order due to her reported apparition to a group of Carmelite nuns. In the niches by the doors stand statues of the prophets Elijah and Elisha. At the top of the facade are sculptures of the four evangelists by Nicolau Nasoni.

The side wall of the church is one of the most impressive and beautiful facades in the city. It is entirely covered with blue and white tiles depicting scenes related to the founding of the Carmelite order and Mount Carmel. This composition, created in 1912, was executed by Silvestre Silvestri and painted by Carlos Branco.

The single-naved interior of the church is adorned with splendid gilded carvings on both the main altar and the side chapels. The ceiling features frescoes painted by Antonio Oliveira, and above the entrance are English organs from 1880.

🚶‍♀Visit

Visiting the Igreja do Carmo church and the Hidden House requires a ticket 🪙 and includes access to the museum and a steep climb to the church roof. Note: The Hidden House has a narrow staircase leading up three floors. The small interiors are different on each level, though all are quite dark and uninviting to modern tourists. Nevertheless, they were once inhabited. 😯