An investment of five million euros aims to promote the Sanctuary of Nossa Senhora da Peneda, in Arcos de Valdevez, in the national qualifying phase, to promote religious and nature tourism, it was announced this Wednesday.
We want to relaunch the Sanctuary, which is, from an artistic, cultural and heritage point of view, very relevant and that can help us promote religious, cultural and nature tourism, since it is located in the heart of the Peneda Gerês National Park. (PNPG),” the mayor of Arcos de Valdevez told the Lusa news agency on Wednesday.
Contacted by the Lusa agency, regarding the presentation of the Romaria de Nossa Senhora da Peneda program, which will take place between August 31 and September 8, João Manuel Esteves said that the project planned for the Sanctuary aims to “create more attractive conditions and with that, help retain people and attract investmentassociated with the relevance of the PNPG to that of a religious group awaiting national classification”, he reinforced.
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Dating back to the 18th century, the Sanctuary, located in Peneda, parish of Gavieira, municipality of Arcos de Valdevez, district of Viana do Castelo, includes the church that was completed in 1875, the great terreiro dos evangelists and a staircase of approx. of 300 meters, and to its sides there are 20 chapels that represent scenes from the life of Christ, as well as the barracks.
Property of the Brotherhood of Nossa Senhora da Peneda, the temple was elevated to a sanctuary in April 2020by decree of the then bishop of the diocese of Viana do Castelo, Anacleto Oliveira.
The Diocese justified its recognition as a sanctuary because it is “one of the most notable Marian monuments” in the Viana do Castelo district and “because of its antiquity, one of the most revered in all of Alto Minho, extending its prestige and influence to the neighboring community.” autonomous community of Galicia, in Spain”.
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Also in 2020, the Municipality of Arcos de Valdevez and the Confraria de Nossa Senhora da Peneda began the process of national classification of the Sanctuary with the Ministry of Culture, namely, the North Regional Directorate of Culture (DRCN) and the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage (DGPC).
In October 2021, the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage opened the procedure for the national qualification of the Sanctuary of Nossa Senhora da Peneda, considered one of the great Marian sanctuaries of the Northwest Peninsular.
“We hope that during the month of September the pronouncement of the National Council of Culture on the classification will be known,” João Manuel Esteves fired.
The social democratic mayor added that the recovery plan for the Sanctuary “aims to benefit the entire area subject to classification as national heritagedefining all types of intervention, both in building and in public space, and the priorities of the investment that must have a duration of five to six years”.
“The project will be presented to national and regional entities, and the goal is to find partners for the planned interventions that will be financed by community, national and regional funds”, said João Manuel Esteves.
The Pilgrimage of Nossa Senhora da Peneda resumes its usual format, after two years of hiatus due to Covid-19. They will be “nine days of prayer, celebration, meeting, uniting the past and the present, uniting the popular and the erudite, uniting the human and the divine.”
The festival, which begins on August 31, “follows the tradition of the great Marian pilgrimages, where the natural landscape that surrounds them, in this case integrated into the PNPG, favors the development of a festive atmosphere and a very specific celebratory spirit. , making this pilgrimage the largest and most fascinating in all of Alto Minho”.
“Along with the religious and contemplative essence, the visitor also finds a remarkable and fabulous architectural and historical heritage, placing the sanctuary as a must and an exceptional tourist destination.”
In 2021, a investment of more than 116 thousand euros he converted one of the shrine’s old quarters into a mountain lodge.
The project, which resulted from a partnership between that municipality in the district of Viana do Castelo and the Confraria de Nossa Senhora da Peneda, created bedrooms, spaces for sanitary facilities and pantry”.
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The sanctuary has been provided with a space to welcome pilgrims from Peneda, Via Mariana, tourists and mountaineers who tour the PNPG or choose the place to practice climbing and other mountain activities.
The riding school has the capacity to house 28 peopledistributed in two rooms.
Source: Observadora
