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São Bartolomeu de Messines (known locally as Messines)
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AlgarveRealty.com - Tel: +351 282 443 163 Fax: +351 282 442 349 Email: mike.sargent@mail.telepac.pt The Website for M H Sargent Soc. De Mediação Imobiliária Lda Rua 25 de Abril 7 - Silves 8300-184 Portugal Lic. N° 360-AMI © Richard Lovejoy 2002 |
Situated in a long fertile valley this typical Algarvian town is approximately 17 kms north west of Silves and 50 kilometres from the Capital of the Algarve, Faro. It lies on the southern hillside of the 'Penedo Grande' which forms the border between these two neighbouring areas. São Bartolomeu de Messines represents a genuine example of a typical rural landscape. The impressive 16th century church built in a transitional style between Manueline and Renaissance is reached by a flight of steps leading to a pillared entrance. At the beginning of the 18th century a baroque facade was added giving it a distinctive appearance with its white walls and red sandstone stonework. The interior is made up of three naves with round arches supported by solomonic pillars. The triumphal arch of the main chapel has non-twisted triple 
columns. At the top of the side naves are two panels of 17th century polychrome tiles depicting The Eucharist and Nossa Senhora da Conceicao (Our Lady of the Conception). Also dating from the 17th century are the tiles that cover the inner sides of the three side altars. The elegant pulpit with its stone staircase is made of local marble and is a small masterpiece of baroque workmanship. Other objects in the church including the table and basin in the sacristy and the font are fashioned of the same marble. The church also boasts a fine collection of 16th to 18th century statues. The area around São Bartolomeu de Messines is rich in traces of the past. Prominent among these are menhir
s which bear witness to the Algarve's thriving Megalithic community in the 4th to 3rd millennia B.C. Apart from it's history São Bartolomeu de Messines is a thriving little town with a good indoor market as well as the weekly outdoor one which attracts custom from the surrounding country areas.