Things to do in Penafiel, Northern Portugal: The Best Sights & Landmarks

The Church of Boelhe, built between the mid and late 13th century, stands out for being one of the most accomplished decorative expressions of the rural Romanesque style. In the north facade, the corbels show a significant variety of motifs, from bull heads to men carrying stones. This church is part of the Route of the Romanesque.

The Church of Abragao still has its Romanesque chancel, a significant legacy of Romanesque architecture from the Tamega and Sousa region. On the exterior, the frieze composed of geometric motifs recalls the decoration of churches from Visigothic and Mozarabic periods. This Church has been documented since 1105. However, the chancel - which tradition ascribes to the initiative of D. Mafalda, the granddaughter of king D. Afonso Henriques - dates back to the second quarter of the 13th century.

The Memorial of Ermida is a type of monument of which there are only six examples left in the entire Portugal. These monuments are associated either with burial places, or with the evocation of someone's memory, or even with the passage of funeral processions. Legend has it that this was one of the stops of the procession that carried the body of D. Mafalda - the granddaughter of king D. Afonso Henriques - to the monastery of Arouca. This Memorial is part of the Route of the Romanesque.