Jardim do Paço Episcopal

The Beiras

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This delightful retreat is the garden of the former bishop's palace, an 18th-century baroque whimsy of clipped box hedges, pools and grand staircases. Scattered around its manicured confines are numerous stone figures, representing the virtues, seasons, kings, saints, months and continents, among other things. Notice how the statues of Portugal’s Spanish-born kings Felipe I and II are smaller than those of the Portuguese-born monarchs.

At the bottom of the kings’ stairway, there’s a hidden, clap-activated fountain. This strange folly was supposedly built by a loutish 18th-century bishop who liked to surprise maidens by soaking their petticoats.

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    Tucked into a corner of the walled village sits the 6th-century Visigothic cathedral, surrounded by a jigsaw puzzle of scattered archaeological remains…

  • Judiaria

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    By the castle is a small judiaria – the former Jewish district. A sizeable community of Jews settled here in the 12th century, then larger waves came in…

  • Museu Cargaleiro

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    0.2 MILES

    This extraordinary museum is spread over two buildings, a mid-18th-century house in Rua dos Cavaleiros (Knights Street) and a clashing contemporary…

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Nearby The Beiras attractions

2. Museu Cargaleiro

0.2 MILES

This extraordinary museum is spread over two buildings, a mid-18th-century house in Rua dos Cavaleiros (Knights Street) and a clashing contemporary…

3. Castelo

0.23 MILES

There’s little left of Castelo Branco's hilltop castle, which was built by the Knights Templar in the 13th century and subsequently extended by Dom Afonso…

5. Lagar de Varas

21.89 MILES

This a 19th-century stone barn near the cathedral houses an impressive olive-oil press made in the traditional way with huge tree trunks providing the…

6. Catedral

21.89 MILES

Tucked into a corner of the walled village sits the 6th-century Visigothic cathedral, surrounded by a jigsaw puzzle of scattered archaeological remains…

7. Ruins

21.9 MILES

The only remaining vestige of the defences the Knights Templar built in the 13th century is the Torre de Menagem. Also known as the Torre dos Templários,…

8. Castelo

24.76 MILES

This formidable stone fortress seems to grow out of the boulder-littered hilltop. There's not a lot left inside the walls but it's a beautiful site,…

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