Following the art route
The artistic content of Funchal's Museum of Sacred Art goes beyond the building's interior
Overlooking Praça do Município, the Funchal Museum of Sacred Art, housed in an old bishop's palace, has one of the richest collections of Flemish paintings in Portugal, most of which were acquired by local merchants in the 16th century, when sugar exports were at their peak.
The scene of the "Annunciation", the central panel of the triptych found in the Church of Bom Jesus da Ribeira, in Funchal, is one of the examples of the artistic quality on display in the museum. Designed in the early 1500s, by the Flemish artist Joos Van Cleve, it illustrates the Archangel Gabriel's announcement to the Virgin Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus Christ.
In the piece, the scene takes place inside a palatial room, where the contrast between the canopy bed covered by a red cloth and the herald's white robes is striking.
Throughout the museum, religious scenes multiply and the details of some of them fill the eye of the most meticulous. The painting "Adoration of the Magi" is one of those works that stimulates the most detailed. Dating from the beginning of the 16th century, the scene brings together the Virgin Mary and the newborn Jesus, flanked by the three Wise Men and Saint Joseph. In the background, the city of Bethlehem appears.
Despite the quality of the works displayed inside the building, the artistic content of the Funchal Museum of Sacred Art overflows and reaches even to the eyes of those walking in the surrounding streets.
It is true that on an island with Madeira's layout there is no lack of places with a sea view. If, nowadays, looking at the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean is a contemplative act, things were a little different in the past.
Many buildings in Funchal have a watchtower, one example being the Town Hall itself, which shares the Town Hall square with the College Church and the Museum of Sacred Art.
In some houses, these towers were a place of leisure and relaxation, but they were also used to spot possible attacks on the island and were also a way for merchants to control the arrival of ships. But of all the towers, perhaps the most beautiful is the one in the Museum of Sacred Art.
The one in the old bishop's house, where the bishops used to have their quarters, was built in the 18th century, adorned by a set of azulejo tiles.
The tile set is composed of 27 tiles in height, totalling four metres, and 91 tiles in length, which corresponds to 13.50 metres. This entire large composition is broken up by the two doors that give access to the Tower's rooms.
The three "Theological Virtues" are represented in the general panorama, composed of three pieces. The figurative representations are surrounded by frames, where angels, pilasters, and a variety of ornamental motifs such as cartouches, acanthus, festoons of flowers, lace and shell shapes stand out.
In the central panel, "Charitas", there is an allegory of charity, with the representation of a woman breastfeeding a child and protecting another, while looking at a third, who is crying on her left shoulder.
To her right is a female figure holding a crucifix in her right hand, Faith - "Fides". On the opposite side, closing the set, there is hope, "Spes", as a female figure standing on a plinth.
However, the art and the beauty of the tiles of the Funchal Museum of Sacred Art's watchtower do not overshadow the brightness of the bay but rather compete until the end for the contemplative gaze. Just like all the art in the museum.