SE CATHEDRAL

Lisbon, Portugal

This Romanesque cathedral is easily recognized by its twin castellated bell towers, an architectural feature that gives the building a military character. This menacing appearance, also seen in other Portuguese cathedrals of the time, is a relic from the Reconquista period, when the cathedral could be used as a base from which to attack the enemy during a siege. It was built in 1147, three years after the city was recaptured from the Moors, for the city's first bishop, the English crusader Gilbert of Hastings. It stands on the site of a mosque and earlier Roman foundations. The original cathedral was badly damaged in the 1755 earthquake, leaving a rather plain and gloomy nave. Restoration in 1930 added the spectacular rose window, one of the most impressive in Portugal. Over the years, gothic, neoclassic and rococo styles of architecture have been blended into the building. It is the city’s oldest building. Of particular interest are the nine chapels around the ambulatory, each with an historical story. King Alfonso IV (1291-1357) and his wife are buried in the chancel.

This sketch was done during a late morning city walk. Vendors were setting up, and traffic beginning to build. The cathedral seems something of a forgotten relic, buried in the growth of passing centuries, having lost the presence it once commanded.