Casa do Fresco - Bom Jesus - Braga

Also called the “Baroque Cave”, this is one of the most exquisite gems of Bom Jesus and a true example of historic architecture.

It is located in one of the paths of the park, in symbiosis with nature, on a higher level and at the back of the temple. It was a fountain where people sought refreshment, which was once part of the garden of the former palace of D. José de Bragança . The work was made in 1751 by André Soares and brought to Bom Jesus in 1919. The exuberant decoration, with a profusion of asymmetrical shells in the ground, confirms the excellence of the rococo style.

There is a canopy. The integration into the surrounding nature creates a special monumentality, where art, faith and nature merge into a connection that is difficult to repeat.

Inside this work are the fountain and the statue of Hercules. This fountain is allegorized by the rough figure of a man of not too great stature. He raises his right arm to carry off a heavy load and he is seated on horseback, supported by a hydra that spouts water through the mouth and ears, as described by Forjaz de Sampaio Pimentel.

Hercules symbolizes the victory and the difficulty of the supremacy of the human soul over its weaknesses. The hydra that is dominated and killed by Hercules, whom he identifies with the risen Christ, completes this symbolism. It is the animal that symbolizes all sins.

Willem Vandenameele