My Escapes Portugal Another Lovely Trip to Portugal! Belém Belém Day Trip Monument to the Discoveries

Monument to the Discoveries

Without any doubt - I'm sure it's Portugal's most prominent monument.
It is dedicated to the Portuguese explorers, navigators who set sail to discover routes, establish colonies and trade with faraway regions during the Portuguese "Age of Discovery".

It's called Padrão dos Descobrimentos, it's 50 m tall with an observatory found on its top and found at the edge of the Rio Tejo in the town of Belém.

I had a few more days left in Portugal and I had to see this.

Besides photographing it from the outside and walking around it, I also went to the top (the roof observatory is at a height of 50 m), from where I admired the views of Belém (you'll see on the photos below).

Now, let me tell you some information about this monument and its significance...

It is dedicated to the Portuguese "Age of Discovery" (also referred to as the "Age of Exploration"), which means the 15th and 16th centuries.

Back then, Portugal was a global power...
Can you imagine this little country as a global power?

No, not as a mere "great power", but as a global power!

In fact, Portugal was the first global power in history...

Militarily, in terms of discoveries and colonization and it was naturally a global power in trade. Eventually, Portugal lost ground to other emerging powers represented by the Spaniards, the English, the French and the Dutch.

The monument was designed in 1939 and finalized by 1940 by architect José Ângelo Cottinelli Telmo and sculptor Leopoldo de Almeida.

As you can see, at the base of the monument, statues depict various historic figures. All unique, all representing real personalities from Portuguese history.

Infante Dom Henrique (also known as Henry the Navigator) is the key figure appearing at the front, holding a boat in his hands.

He was the 5th son of King João I.

Infante Henrique is the iconic figure of the Portuguese Age of Discovery, because he initiated the explorations of other continents and developed maritime trade with faraway regions.

The Portuguese Empire has spread across the globe, colonizing lands that today belong to 53 different states, controlling the Indian Ocean for around 100 years (16th century).

The statues complex includes: Pedro Álvares Cabral (he discovered Brazil), Vasco da Gama (discovered the sea route to India), Fernão de Magalhães (Ferdinand Magellan) (the first to circumnavigate the globe), João Gonçalves Zarco (navigator who established settlements on the Madeira Islands) etc.

For a mere 3 EUR, you can go up with the lift and see the beautiful views from the roof. It is worth...

By the way, this is the official site of the monument.

See more photos below...

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