Convento de Santa Teresa

Description:

• In the middle of the 18 century two sisters began to build the convent, where the chapel of Desterro formerly existed. The nuns belonged to the order of Saint Clara, but in 1777 adopted the severe rules of the Teresianas, and so they started a life of seclusion; only their superior is allowed to communicate through an ingenious device on the wall of the vestibule. One cannot visit the closure, but in the vestibule there is a fine work in Portuguese tiles, depicting Bible scenes. The tiny drawing room is the only place where the nuns can get in touch with the outside world, through a window with iron bars. To reach the church the visitors pass through a rough iron gate and after climbing a slope they arrive in front of the austere building, with its white washed walls and stonework windows, some of them with huge spikes, turned outside out, to show the isolation of the order. Access to the church is strictly limited to moments during the religious services. In t he vestibule there is a reproduction of the superior's room with her few personal belongings.
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