Exterior of Pena Palace - Sintra
The Pena Palace of Sintra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the Seven Wonders of Portugal. Perched on a hill with its’ brightly coloured exterior it is one of the most romantic buildings in Sintra Town. On the day of my visit, it was cloudy and somehow it dampened the view but no one can control the weather. After purchasing the ticket , a beautiful arch leads the way to a courtyard where a yellow coloured gift shop is situated.
Lizard or Iron Gate
The Iron Gate of the palace has lizards are depicted at the exterior of the gate, that’s why this gate is sometimes called the Lizard Gate. Opposite to the lizard door is the gift shop of the palace. Gift shop has a minaret (turret) with a Moorish dome is next to the arch of the Lizard Door. Then a corridor leads to the other parts of the palace. After coming up from the drawbridge, one is face to face with the beautiful exterior of the palace.
History
The palace’s history started in the Middle Ages when a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Pena was built on the top of the hill above Sintra. Palacio da Pena originated in 1839, when the king consort Fernando II acquired the ‘Our Lady of Pena Monastery’ ruins to adapt it to a palace. Ferdinand of Saxe Coburg-Gotha, the artist-husband of Queen Maria II, commissioned Prussian architect Ludwig von Eschwege in 1840. Moorish arches and the Persian style domes add a sense of eastern beauty to its’ facade. In all, the construction styles of this palace are Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manueline, Neo-Islamic and Neo-Renaissance.
The Arches Yard is named after the Moorish arches. These arches are open from the top and decorated with same design as the Great Mosque of Cordoba.
Triton Gate
The Triton Gate refers to a figure which is half human and half fish. Sometimes this door is called Newt Door due to the figure depicted here. This gate is, probably, one of the most photographed doors in the palace. Attention to details is one of the most important factor reflected in this door. In the past, Portugal was known for producing best quality glazed tiles. So this technology was used to adorn the exterior of the Pena Palace.
Next to the Triton Gate lies another door which has Moorish architectural style. The Pena Park is a large area which surrounds the palace and it offers plenty of other exciting sites within. Clouds seemed to be worsened in the park so I decided to to leave the park.
