Read aloud by your device's voice. It sounds different on each device.
The site
The station stands on the site of a convent ordered by Manuel I in 1518
The station was built on the site of the Benedictine Convent of São Bento da Avé Maria, ordered built by King Manuel I in 1518. A fire in 1783 destroyed the monastery, which was later rebuilt as a convent. It was demolished in 1892.
The architect
José Marques da Silva designed a U-shaped Beaux-Arts station
Construction began in 1904 to plans by the Porto architect José Marques da Silva, influenced by French Beaux-Arts architecture. The city removed him from the project in 1909, and the whole project took 13 years.
13years for the structure and interior decor together
The tiles
Around twenty thousand azulejo tiles cover the vestibule
The panels of around twenty thousand azulejo tiles were designed and painted by Jorge Colaço. He placed the first tiles on 13 August 1905, and the tile project required 11 years to complete.
20,000azulejo tiles composed by Jorge Colaço
The scenes
The tile scenes show battles, a royal wedding and work in the vineyards
Blue and white scenes show the Battle of Valdevez (1140) and the entrance to Porto of King John I and Philippa of Lancaster, to celebrate their wedding in 1387. Panels also show the vineyards, the harvest and the wine shipment down the Douro.
The line
São Bento is the western end of the scenic Douro line to Pocinho
São Bento is the main terminus of Porto's suburban railway lines and the western terminus for the scenic Douro line between Porto and Pocinho. Trains from Lisbon arrive at Campanhã, with a local train on to São Bento.
Day 2, morning
Next is Clérigos Tower.
More stories from this trip idea
The words are a retelling of the Wikipedia article São Bento railway station, and are shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. They are checked against those articles, and a fact that is not in them is left out.