Barcos was one of the Douro villages selected for a programme on the Douro wine-producing villages, which provided an opportunity for the regeneration and enhancement of the Douro wine-producing villages, by boosting social and economic regeneration, encouraging the population to stay in the area, and strengthening the promotion of Douro tourism, with the benefit of recovering its historical centre, among other things.
Barcos stands out in the landscape due to its urban structure. The first thing we notice is that the nucleus was built around the parish church. The village has several medieval buildings, grand modern houses and more typical modest houses that combine to form a rather interesting urban area, with some buildings being more erudite in nature and function, for example, the former college church from the 17th and 18th centuries. It has a small historical centre with a stone cross and the parish church. There are other buildings, such as Casa da Roda and Casa da Câmara, denoting the importance that the municipality once had.
Barcos Parish Church, a fine example of the late Romanesque style, perhaps from the 14th century, is listed as a National Monument. Its façade has side doors in iconographic Romanesque-style and decoration. The doorway faces west and has two small columns topped by capitals with images of monsters. The other two typical doors are in the northern and southern façades and are richly decorated with engraved stones.
Inside the church, the chancel has a beautiful altar in gilded woodcarving from the late 17th century and the ceiling has 28 panels painted by a reputed artist and depicts scenes of the life of Christ. The coffered ceiling of the sacristy was painted by a popular artist. The sacristy is used for storing farming tools, artistic precious items, such as 18th century paintings depicting the niches of the Stations of the Cross.
Location: Tabuaço
Barcos stands out in the landscape due to its urban structure. The first thing we notice is that the nucleus was built around the parish church. The village has several medieval buildings, grand modern houses and more typical modest houses that combine to form a rather interesting urban area, with some buildings being more erudite in nature and function, for example, the former college church from the 17th and 18th centuries. It has a small historical centre with a stone cross and the parish church. There are other buildings, such as Casa da Roda and Casa da Câmara, denoting the importance that the municipality once had.
Barcos Parish Church, a fine example of the late Romanesque style, perhaps from the 14th century, is listed as a National Monument. Its façade has side doors in iconographic Romanesque-style and decoration. The doorway faces west and has two small columns topped by capitals with images of monsters. The other two typical doors are in the northern and southern façades and are richly decorated with engraved stones.
Inside the church, the chancel has a beautiful altar in gilded woodcarving from the late 17th century and the ceiling has 28 panels painted by a reputed artist and depicts scenes of the life of Christ. The coffered ceiling of the sacristy was painted by a popular artist. The sacristy is used for storing farming tools, artistic precious items, such as 18th century paintings depicting the niches of the Stations of the Cross.
Location: Tabuaço
