Padrão dos Descobrimentos

The Monument to the Discoveries stands on the northern bank of the Tagus in Lisbon’s Belém district, where ships once sailed to India and the Orient. Its towering prow-shaped design rises 56 metres above the river, built in rose-tinted stone from Leiria and limestone from Sintra. The monument was first imagined in 1939 by architect José Ângelo Cottinelli Telmo and sculptor Leopoldo de Almeida as part of the 1940 Portuguese World Exhibition. After being rebuilt in 1960 to mark the fifth centenary of Henry the Navigator’s death, it became a permanent tribute to Portugal’s Age of Discovery. The structure’s concrete frame supports 33 statues of explorers, monarchs, cartographers and scientists who shaped the era. Each figure is carved in limestone and positioned to face the river, symbolising their journey into the unknown. The central statue depicts Infante Henry the Navigator holding a model carrack, flanked by figures such as Vasco da Gama, Bartolomeu Dias and Luís de Camões. On the northern façade, two metal inscriptions honour Henry and the Portuguese explorers who opened sea routes. The surrounding square features a 50-metre compass rose designed by architect Luís Cristino da Silva, with a 14-metre-wide map of the Portuguese voyages. Inside, the monument contains an auditorium, exhibition halls and a viewing platform reached by lift or stairs. The top floor offers sweeping views of the Tagus, Belém Tower and the Jerónimos Monastery. The auditorium screens a multimedia exhibition on Lisbon’s history, while other rooms host rotating displays. The space between the ramps leads down to the riverbank, where the monument’s shadow falls across the water.