Church of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia (Penafiel)


A Church of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia, sometime referred to as the Church of Our Lady of Mercy, is a 17th-century church in the civil parish of Penafiel, in the municipality of the same name, in the Portuguese district of Porto.

History

In 1621, the construction on the main altar began, due to the initiative of patron Amaro Moreira, abbey of the Church of São Vicente de Ermelo, under the title of Bishop Don Friar Inácio de Caetano. It was only in 1780, though, that the conflicts between the municipal council and Misericórdia were resolved, but the public work was never concluded.
Between 1834 and 1850, the old organ from the Monastery of Bustelo was installed in the Misericórdia church.
In 2004, the church was inaugurated and reopened as a museological nucleus that included the church and annex spaces.

Architecture

The church, located in the historic centre of Penafiel, is implanted in an accentuated square, with its front facade fronting the Largo Padre Américo and rear the Rua da Misericórdia. In the south it was flanked by tower and addorsed by the Centro de Convívio da Santa Casa da Misericórdia, and to the north the old house of the sacristan, that became the museum, resulting in its own block. Immediately in front is the municipal palace/hall.
The facade, conceived as an altarpiece, is bordered by pillars at the corners, accentuating the verticality. To the right is an 18th-century bell tower, that is surmounted by bulbous dome covered in tile. The interior is a single nave. The choir presents a monumental coffered ceiling.
The museum includes the main church, high choir, sacristy, reception hall and the old sacristan's residence, located between the sacristy and the presbytery. It is in this two-storey space, that the reception and beginning of public tours begin, marked by a great part of the public works.