This fine museum, housed in the 15th-century Mosteiro de Jesus, owes its finest treasures to Princesa Joana (later canonised), daughter of Afonso V. In 1472, 11 years after the convent was founded, Joana ‘retired’ here and, though forbidden to take full vows, she stayed until her death in 1490. Her tomb, a 17th-century masterpiece of inlaid marble mosaic, takes centre stage in a lavishly decorated room (the remodelled lower choir stalls), while an adjacent gold-leafed chapel displays azulejos (hand-painted tiles) depicting her life.
The museum's extraordinary painting collection, which spans the 10th to 15th centuries, includes a late-15th-century portrait of Joana, attributed to Nuno Gonçalves.
