The Azores, through the External Services of the Regional Directorate for Culture, under the administration of the Regional Secretariat for Education and Culture, joins the celebrations of the International Day for Monuments and Sites marked on April 18. This year's edition will be dedicated to the theme "Heritage and Rural Landscape."
On this day, the Horta Museum promotes an interpretative itinerary at 10 AM through Santa Cruz, which is said to have been the place where the first settlers set foot on the island of Faial.
The initiative is open to the public in general and will take participants to this area of Horta city, where they may visit the Angústias Church, located upon the site of the first Santa Cruz chapel, the Santa Cruz wharf and the Santa Cruz Castle.
In turn, the Francisco Lacerda Museum on the island of São Jorge celebrates the event on Saturday, April 13, with a painting on the spot activity titled "Painting Manadas" to be conducted by José Pedro Santo between 2 and 6 PM.
This activity aims to present technical and material processes used in classical and academical painting, the artistic conventions of the period when the Santa Bárbara Church was built, drawing inspiration from the rural landscape that surrounds it.
The Santa Maria Museum, in collaboration with the "Ouvidoria" of Vila do Porto (ecclesiastical division of parishes for administration purposes), will open Wednesday, April 17, the São Pedro Gonçalves Chapel near the São Brás Fort. The initiative will include guided tours and the presentation of a historical explanation about the building and its architectural value.
The initiative "45 Minutes of History in Five Languages" will take place at the Museum of Angra do Heroísmo on April 18 at 3 PM.
This visit to the Museum begins with pieces belonging to the Museum's collection. The purpose is to highlight the economic cycles of different periods in the history of the Region as well as to evidence its marks on the archipelago's economy and the island's landscape.
The visit may be guided in Portuguese, English, Spanish, German and Dutch. Those who are interested should register before April 17 at the email [email protected].
On April 18, the Graciosa Museum organises the activity titled "Discovering the Ponta da Barca Lighthouse," a tourist and cultural itinerary that starts at the museum, passing by the Red Clay area. It also includes the observation of aspects related to the rural landscape of the northern part of the island and ends with a visit to the Ponta da Barca Lighthouse.
Registrations should be made at the Graciosa Museum by telephone 295 712 429 until April 15.
The João José da Graça Public Library and Regional Archive in Horta opens a "Book Exhibition" on April 18, which may be visited from Monday to Friday between 9 AM and 7 PM and on Saturdays from 2 to 7 PM.
In partnership with Flores Natural Park, the museum of the westernmost island of the Azores marks this International Day with a climb to Pico da Sé mountain in Fazenda de Santa Cruz on April 27 at 9 AM.
On April 24, the Carlos Machado Museum in Ponta Delgada will hold a session on architectural heritage in the village of Fenais da Ajuda.
In a partnership with Fenais da Ajuda Kindergarten and Elementary School, this initiative will include a session that will address the history and origin of Nossa Senhora da Ajuda Church, which belonged to the former Franciscan Convent Franciscans.
In the afternoon session, the Museum's Educational Services will organise the workshop "Stories that houses tell," an activity intended to explore the stories and legends in the context of the architectural heritage of that village as part of its collective memory.
In collaboration with ICOMOS Portugal, the Directorate-General for Cultural Heritage promotes the dissemination of the theme "Heritage and Rural Landscape" with the purpose of "promoting the understanding of rural areas as landscape and the landscape as heritage." Moreover, it intends to "stimulate the perception of territories in permanent change that accumulate knowledge and practices resulting from a continuous experience in constant adaptation to environmental, cultural, social, political and economic imperatives."
The Regional Directorate for Culture informs that this and other events may be consulted in the Cultural Agenda of CulturAçores Portal at the following address: www.culturacores.azores.gov.pt.