Restaurants, bars and museums in Porto · Page 170

Torre dos Clérigos

Baixa · Sights & Landmarks

The Torre dos Clérigos stands on Rua de São Filipe de Nery in Porto's Baixa district. It is the granite bell tower of the Clérigos Church, and it forms part of a single Baroque complex that also includes a museum of sacred art and history. The Brotherhood of the Clérigos (Irmandade dos Clérigos) owns and runs the tower, the church and the museum. The site sits within the Historic Centre of Oporto, a UNESCO World Heritage Site (reference 755, inscribed in 1996), although the tower itself is not separately inscribed. Nicolau Nasoni, an Italian-born architect who settled in Porto, designed the tower. Work on the church beneath it began in 1732, and the tower was built between 1754 and 1763. The style is Portuguese Baroque, and the church is described as one of the first in Portugal laid out on an elliptical, or oval, plan. The tower rises 75.6 metres over six floors, and its form draws on the slender bell towers of Tuscany, which Nasoni would have known from Italy. For a long time it was the tallest structure in Portugal, and its height was meant to let sailors coming upriver on the Douro fix on it as they approached the city. Visitors reach the top by climbing 240 steps up a narrow stone spiral staircase. There is no lift. The same stair carries people both up and down, so entry is timed and groups are admitted in small batches to keep it from jamming. At the top, a viewing gallery wraps around the tower and gives an unbroken 360-degree panorama. From there you can pick out the terracotta rooftops, the Douro and its bridges, São Bento, the cathedral and the Aliados, and on a clear day the line of the Atlantic beyond the river mouth. One ticket covers the tower climb, the church and the museum. Entry is for a chosen day and time slot, and a mobile e-ticket with a QR code is shown on the phone at the door. The tower is open daily, roughly 09:00 to 19:00, with the last entry around 18:30, though hours can extend on special evenings and in peak season. A typical visit to the tower, church and museum together takes about 45 to 60 minutes, longer for those who linger at the top. Late afternoon into sunset suits the view well, when the low sun warms the rooftops and the river, while clear winter days give the sharpest long views.

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