Building

Solar located in the center of Castelo Branco, right in the historic area of ​​the city. It consists of 3 buildings from different centuries (16th, 17th and 18th), interconnected, all of which require restoration work.

The Solar, with a construction area of ​​3,000m2 and a total area of ​​4,200m2, comprises: .
.Basement: with 9 rooms.

. Ground floor: with 3 bedrooms, 5 living rooms, bathroom, kitchen, + 16 rooms to adapt .

1st Floor: with 6 bedrooms, 9 living rooms, 3 bathrooms, kitchen, + 8 rooms to adapt .

2nd Floor: with 6 bedrooms, 2 living rooms, attic, + 7 rooms to adapt.

Solar with enormous suitability for a hotel unit, with a prior study having been carried out which gave it a capacity of 32 rooms. Curiosities:

. This Solar was used in the filming of the film "The past and the present" by Manoel de Oliveira, in 1971.

. the garden is large and has space for various uses. . the Solar features tiles that are more than 300 years old in several rooms of the house.


Detailed description of the Solar

A) Location within Castelo Branco:
Taking the location of Castelo Branco City Hall as the center of Castelo Branco, the house is about 200 meters from the City Council, about 200 meters from the Civil Government. Regarding the Castelo Branco Museum, the house is located approximately 500 meters from it. As for Jardim do Paço do Bispo, the house is about 400 meters away. It is approximately 100 meters from Castelo Branco Cathedral. It is approximately 50 meters from the Castelo Branco District Archive. It is located approximately 50 meters from Casa do Arco do Bispo. It is possible to access the Castle by walking 10 minutes uphill.


B) Differentiating aspects (tiles, granite, garden, having an episode from the history of Portugal, if it is classified heritage):
The whole consists of 4 houses, contiguous and connected to each other:
1st House – Torreão (from the 17th century), has a ground floor; two floors and ceiling.
2nd House – A long and large house (consisting of ground floor, one floor and ceiling), extending the Tower and connected to it; This second house could be from the 18th century, and, except for the Chapel in Torreão, it is mainly in this house that there are the 18th century tile panels described in the book «Tilework in Portugal in the 18th century» by J.M. dos Santos Simões, 1979 edition, from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
3rd House – This third house, smaller than the others, and in poor condition, consists of a ground floor, two floors and a ceiling. There is currently a drugstore in it. It is a house that is undoubtedly from the 16th century, which is immediately recognizable by the characteristic of the bevelled granite doors (as this bevelled stonework on the doors is a typical characteristic of 16th century houses). Furthermore, this house has on the ground floor, where the Drugstore operates, very interesting round arches (also typical of the 16th century) in granite, recently valued as they were exposed. The 1st floor of this house (from the 16th century) is entirely connected to the Tower (from the 17th century).
4th House – This fourth house, adjacent to the 16th century house, is smaller and lower than it; As for the period to which it belongs, it is also from the 16th century Inside, it also has round arches (typical of the 16th century), arches of which only the granite moldings are exposed, as well as bevelled granite stonework.

The entrance to the house is through a granite-walled courtyard, with green iron railings and Portuguese cobblestone flooring. The windows that face the street, as well as those that face the garden, have granite frames. The main entrance consists of a staircase (14 steps) in granite, whose handrail and balustrade are also in granite, with a ceiling height equivalent to the junction of the 1st and 2nd floor, at this entrance there is a holy water font also in granite. The ceiling has paintings and is made of plaster. On the first floor there are three rooms with tile panels, Bica do Sapato (18th century), one of them represents a scene that is included in the book “Azulejaria em Portugal no Século XVIII by J. M. dos Santos Simões, 1979 edition, from Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, with a reference to the house and the tiles in the following terms: «Casa Nobre (on Rua João Carlos Abrunhosa, nos. 50-52) A true urban palace, the tiles of the three rooms and the chapel are preserved in this mansion: Entrance room (on the axis of the garden): Two larger panels and eight small ornamental trims of 8 high tiles, manganese center, with garden scenes. North room: Ashlar of the same height, with four larger panels and eight corner trims. The decoration is the same, with the figured central part, painted in blue, representing the Four Seasons of the Year, labeled: OVTONO, SPRING, WINTER and ESTIO, this one covered by a large mirror.

Noble Hall: Silar of the same height with two large panels (32 tiles long), two smaller ones and eight corner trims. Same ornamental type as the frames, manganese centers with landscapes taken from engravings, perhaps by Vernet, or at least in his style. Chapel: 7 high ashlar. Here we see a large panel, 26 tiles long, and two more flanking the door. The rest of the walls are covered with trim. The polychrome borders are made of a simpler shell. The blue centers feature scenes of common hermits. The entire design is still reminiscent of the period of great production in 1750-60. This tile is supposed to be from the Bica do Sapato Factory and, as Mr. Dr. Luís Pinto Garcia informed me, there was a document proving the purchase from that Factory. However, the fate he led is unknown! Stylistically, the tiles will date from around 1770-80.” There are also two more tile panels outside the aforementioned entrance room, facing the garden, which are not included in the book because, when the author visited the house, they were not shown to him, due to forgetfulness. The three rooms, with tiles, have painted ceilings. They are also made in dough. The chapel has a gilded altar. The old dining room has a granite fireplace lined with wood and a wooden ceiling, also made of mortar. The room next to the dining room has a granite fireplace and a wooden ceiling (wooden color), also made of mortar. One of the rooms with tile panels also has paintings on the walls. One of the rooms with tile panels has a door leading to the garden staircase. At the top of the staircase, on each side of the door are the aforementioned tile panels that are not included in the aforementioned book. The staircase is made of granite. At the bottom of the stairs there is a granite tank. In the garden there are four granite benches set in flowerbeds. The flower beds are also edged with granite stonework. At the end of the yard, beneath the lemon trees, there are two more granite benches. The vast majority of the doors and windows in the house have granite frames, both for the outside (all, with the exception of three windows on the 2nd floor that face the backyard) and for the inside (those that are not in granite, are in wood).

In some rooms, the windows also have granite benches. In the old part of the house, at the back there is a patio with a granite well and a granite water tank, a modern washing tank, a modern chicken coop, a granite niche (old), two very long antique granite benches . Access to this courtyard is via two service staircases with exits, one from the current kitchen on the first floor and the other from the old kitchen on the same first floor, in which there is a chimney that can be considered a fireplace. Leading onto this ancient courtyard are multiple doors from various other parts of the House (in addition to the houses, that is: the Tower and the 16th century house). One of the rooms overlooking the courtyard has very old, interesting and even architecturally “intriguing” stonework arches; which are semi-covered. There is also, within this room, a type of drinking fountain for animals, old, also made of stone.


C) Space characteristics (areas, number of rooms, number of fireplaces, etc.): Areas and Dimensions (of the 1st and 2nd Houses):
Total land area ________________ 4,177.00 m2
Implementation area ________________1,209.00 m2
Patio/Front Area 1st Floor ________________ 218.00 m2
Garden Area ________________2,272.00 m2
Interior Patio Area _______________________ 478.00 m2
Basement Area __________________ 226.00 m2
Ground Floor Area _________________997.00 m2
Porch Area _________________73.00 m2
1st Floor Area ________________ 997.00 m2
Balcony Area _________________ 10.00 m2
2nd Floor Area ________________ 358.00 m2
Balcony Area _________________ 7.00 m2
Ceiling Area ___________________ 997.00 m2
Areas and Dimensions (of the 3rd House):
Land Area ___________________ 130.00 m2
Ground Floor Area ___________________ 130.00 m2
1st Floor Area __________________ 130.00 m2
Areas and Dimensions (of the 4th House):
Land Area __________________ 103.00 m2
Ground floor area __________________ 103.00 m2
1st Floor Area _________________ 103.00 m2
2nd Floor Area _________________ 103.00 m2
Number of divisions – see attached plans.
The house has direct access from two streets: Rua João Carlos Abrunhosa (to which the granite-walled courtyard of the main entrance leads) and Rua do Pina. It also has access through the Jardim/Quintal via Rua do Rei D. Dinis (this street is currently closed to traffic, except for access to the aforementioned entrance to the Jardim/Quintal).

D) Conservation status: A part of the house (the ground floor) is in a state of conservation suitable for housing. The garden is poorly maintained. Part of the 1st floor is habitable, with the remaining part closed and unoccupied for a long time. The 2nd floor is in a reasonable state of conservation. The attic has been closed and unoccupied for a long time.