In this village, there are Manueline houses, medieval sidewalks, and 16th century houses, a Gate in the wall whose construction is attributed to D. Sancho II, and a nobleman who rests on an unusual granite tomb with a headstone and a stone for a backrest – but the most peculiar aspect of Castelo Mendo, where the entire History of a country seems to fit inside, is the forbidden love that has been forever engraved in its stones.
A stone gargoyle in the wall of the (old court), we find Mendo, a figure that looks like a man encrusted in the wall. On the other side, in a stone of a house on the ground floor in front, you’ll find a figure of a woman, Menda. No one knows the story of these two figures. People suppose that it was a great passion, perhaps a love story like Romeo and Juliet, two lovers destined to contemplate each other for eternity, in the stones at Castelo Mendo.
Judging by the idyllic scenery of Castelo Mendo, it’s not hard to believe that a story like the lovers from Verona may have happened. After all, Castelo Mendo is a place of enchantment, a village where nature and History live together in unparalleled harmony. In Castelo Mendo, we feel we have been transported to a time when the days passed by more slowly, and the only thing that mattered was…to breathe in deep and live.
History lovers are not indifferent to the richest outdoor museum that is Castelo Mendo. In addition to the emblematic landmarks that we mentioned, in this Historical Village, we also find a house with a porch balcony in the Pillory Square. The house was supposedly built in the 16th century, considering the existence of beveled gaps and an ogee-arched doorway in the main body of the dwelling. At the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries, some alterations were verified in the building, namely the construction of a stunning porch balcony.
The Pillory of Castelo Mendo is another curiosity we will find in this village. Seven meters in height, it is one of the highest in the Beira Interior region. It’s located in the plaza with the same name and, along with the S. Vicente Church Square, constitutes an urban structure of great significance and importance since the Middle Ages. The Pillory dates back to the 16th century, and it is composed of a monolithic, octagonal shaft, crowned by a cage capital – it is Public-interest Property since 1933.
There are more than enough reasons to visit this village where time has stood still, amid the enchanting legends and hidden treasures of our country’s History. To discover, without rush, an immaculate nook where peace and quiet reign…
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