History

The old building of the Monument to the Discoveries, drawn by Cottinelli Telmo, and projected by Leitão de Barros and Leopoldo de Almeida, was built in 1940, as part of the Portuguese World Exhibition, and its structure was originally made of iron and cement, with 33 sculpted figures, Infante D. Henrique was the highest one.

In 1960 the 5^th centenary of Infante D. Henrique’s death was celebrated in the places he used to live in.

In Belém, the Monument to the Discoveries was rebuilt, made in concrete and covered with stone rose from Leiria, aiming to be the commemorations icon.

As part of those commemorations, the monument was inaugurated on August 9^th, 1960.

The monument was concluded on October 10^th of the same year, becoming property of the Lisbon Port General Administration. In 1962, a deal was closed, and it became the Municipality’s property instead.

The Monument to the Discoveries remained unaltered until 1979. In that year, on November 5^th, a Municipal decision stated that the monument was to host an exhibition. The truth is that only in 1985 the needed changes were made, in order to allow the visitors’ access to the belvedere, auditorium and to the two exhibition rooms.

Decoration of the access path: Wind Rose

The South Africa Republic offered, for the decoration of the access path, a 50m diameter Wind Rose, made in different kinds of marble, and containing a 14m wide planisphere. Inlayed vessels and caravels show the main routes of the Portuguese Discoveries. The drawing is by architect Cristino da Silva.