Description of the attraction
The Church of Saint Roch in Lisbon is one of the first Jesuit churches in the Portuguese-speaking countries. For over 200 years, the church housed the Jesuit community until they were expelled from Portugal. After an earthquake in 1755, the church and ancillary premises were transferred to the Lisbon House of Mercy Santa Casa do Misericordia de Lisboa. The Church of Saint Roch in Lisbon was one of the buildings that remained virtually intact during the Great Lisbon Earthquake.
The church is named after Saint Roch, a Catholic saint who patronized the sick with serious illnesses, pilgrims, and was also known for healing people from the plague. The church was built in the 16th century and was the first Jesuit church built in the “church-auditorium” style specifically for preaching. The church had many chapels, most of them built in the Baroque style of the early 17th century. The most famous chapel is the chapel of St. John the Baptist of the 18th century.
Different architectural styles were used in the exterior and interior decoration of the church. In the decoration of the chapels of St. Francis Xavier, the Sagrada Familia, as well as the altar, you can see the features of Mannerism. In the early baroque style, the chapel of the Holy Communion was built, in the late baroque style - the chapel of Our Lady of the Teachings and Our Lady of Piety.
Built in 1740 in the Romanesque Baroque style, the chapel of St. John the Baptist is considered a unique masterpiece in European architecture. Architects Nicola Salvi and Luigi Vanvitelli from Italy worked on the project. The chapel was built in Rome for 8 years. Then, after the chapel was consecrated by Pope Benedict XV, it was transported to Portugal on three ships. The inside of the chapel is decorated with valuable mosaic panels depicting biblical scenes such as the Baptism of Christ and Trinity Day. The decoration of the chapel was made in a new architectural style for Portugal - rocaille, where decorative elements - festoons, garlands, angels, shell-shaped ornament - were combined with classical severity.
