CAMÕES AND THE CLÉRIGOS, ON THE POET’S 500TH BIRTHDAY

On June 13, the Clérigos Tower, “in the city where the eternal name of Portugal originated (as it is famous for)”, will host a tribute to the author of “Os Lusíadas”. Alongside the inauguration of the exhibition “Camões and the Clérigos”, with a first edition of the greatest work of Portuguese literature, there will be a lecture with professor Rita Marnoto and a walk with historian Joel Cleto.

The exhibition will also include two other very rare volumes of the 16th century poet’s greatest work. In parallel with this inauguration to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the birth of Luís Vaz de Camões, there will be two events of a highly historical nature.

To analyze the work of Camões – where the invocation of Porto appears in “there in the City from which the eternal name of Portugal originated (as is famous) – the Irmandade dos Clérigos has invited Rita Marnoto, professor at the University of Coimbra. At 4pm on June 13, the literature specialist will begin a lecture that will precede the opening of the temporary exhibition showing the first edition of the Lusíadas. Then, at 5:30 p.m., a Camonian Walk will begin, led by historian Joel Cleto, from the Clérigos Church towards the bust of Camões, which has looked down on Porto’s most majestic building from the top of Rua 31 de Janeiro since 1942.

“The Clérigos Tower program couldn’t miss out on such a symbolic moment as the 500th anniversary of our greatest literary figure,” says Manuel Fernando, president of the Clérigos Brotherhood, which manages the monument. “We are aware of the importance of the nineteenth-century icon of Portuguese architecture that we manage on behalf of Porto and the country, but no other Portuguese work has such a dimension as ‘Os Lusíadas’. That’s why we not only opened our museum to a first edition of the work, but also invited two important personalities to help us better understand Camões,” he concludes.

Attendance at the lecture and the exhibition opening are free, but subject to available capacity.

To take part in the Camões tour guided by historian Joel Cleto, register here.