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02 · Medieval

Manueline

c. 1490–1540

Late Gothic stonework with twisted columns, carved ropes, armillary spheres and shells around portals and windows.

Look for

Carved stone relief Organic ornament Rib vault Tracery window
Jerónimos Monastery, Lisbon, Portugal: an example of Manueline architecture
Jerónimos Monastery, Lisbon, Portugal. Photo: Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0
Belém Tower, Lisbon, Portugal
Belém Tower Lisbon, Portugal · Rehman Abubakr, CC BY-SA 4.0
Convent of Christ, Tomar, Portugal
Convent of Christ Tomar, Portugal · Jose Manuel, CC BY-SA 4.0
Monastery of Batalha, Batalha, Portugal
Monastery of Batalha Batalha, Portugal · Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 4.0
Monastery of Jesus of Setúbal, Setúbal, Portugal
Monastery of Jesus of Setúbal Setúbal, Portugal · Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0

what it is

Manueline is the Portuguese version of late Gothic, built mainly under King Manuel I, who reigned from 1495 to 1521. Buildings keep Gothic structure such as rib vaults (ceilings carried on crossing stone ribs), but carved ornament covers the portals, windows and columns. Typical motifs are twisted columns, stone ropes, armillary spheres (a navigational instrument that was Manuel's emblem), crosses of the Order of Christ, shells, anchors and plants.

The Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon has a south portal with gables, pinnacles and figures in carved niches, and a cloister with nautical motifs. Belém Tower in Lisbon (1514-1519) carries twisted rope, armillary spheres and Order of Christ crosses. The chapter house window of the Convent of Christ in Tomar (1510-1513) combines rope and plant carving with the same emblems. At Batalha, the portal of the Unfinished Chapels, completed in 1509, is 15 meters high. Unlike Gothic elsewhere in Europe, Manueline ornament includes emblems of the voyages of discovery and of the crown.

how to spot one

Carved stone relief Figures or patterns carved into stone so they project from a flat background, called low relief when shallow and high relief when deep. It appears on ancient temples and Gothic churches. Organic ornament Decoration based on plant forms such as vines, leaves and flowers, often with curving lines. It is a main feature of Art Nouveau, about 1890 to 1910, and of Louis Sullivan's buildings. Rib vault A vault built on a framework of crossing stone arches, called ribs, with thin stone panels filling the spaces between them. It is a defining feature of Gothic churches and cathedrals. Tracery window A window divided by vertical stone bars called mullions, which branch at the top into curved stonework called tracery. It supports large areas of glass in Gothic churches and Gothic Revival buildings.

Also look for

TurretCrenellationArcadeButtress

history

The style takes its name from King Manuel I. Francisco Adolfo de Varnhagen coined the term in 1842, in his description of the Jerónimos Monastery. One of the first Manueline buildings is the Monastery of Jesus in Setúbal, designed by Diogo de Boitaca, whose church was mostly built between 1490 and 1495 and has spiralling columns and rope-patterned vaulting. Boitaca also began the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon in 1501. Other leading designers were Mateus Fernandes at Batalha, Francisco de Arruda at Belém Tower, and Diogo de Arruda and João de Castilho at the Convent of Christ in Tomar.

Work at Jerónimos continued under Castilho from about 1517. Diogo de Torralva resumed it in 1550, and Jérôme de Rouen added classical elements from 1571, so the building was finished in a different style from the one it began in. The 1755 Lisbon earthquake destroyed much original Manueline work. In the 19th century Portuguese architects revived the style as Neo-Manueline. UNESCO listed Jerónimos Monastery and Belém Tower together as a World Heritage Site in 1983.

where to find it

Lisbon's Belém district (Jerónimos Monastery and Belém Tower), plus the Convent of Christ in Tomar, the Monastery of Batalha and the Monastery of Jesus in Setúbal.

easy to confuse with

Notre-Dame de Paris, an example of Gothic Gothic Pointed arches, ribbed ceilings, and flying buttresses that let stone walls turn into glass and light. Florence Cathedral, an example of Early Renaissance Early Renaissance Round arches on slender columns, flat wall pilasters, and calm, measured symmetry. Court of the Lions, Alhambra, an example of Moorish / Mudéjar Moorish / Mudéjar Spain's Islamic tradition: horseshoe arches, carved stucco, glazed tilework, and patterned brick. Church of Santa Prisca de Taxco, an example of Churrigueresque Churrigueresque Carved stone portals and altarpieces covered in ornament, framed by estipites, tapering pilasters wider at the top than the base.