Cinfães has a centuries-old foundation, having the first charter granted by
King Manuel I, dated May 1, 1513. Comprising a mountainous part and a
riverside part, this county spreads out along the northern slope of the back
of Montemuro. The Serra de Montemuro and the Douro River valley are two key
morphological axes, which give this municipality landscape characteristics
of unparalleled beauty and diversity.
Serra de Montemuro offers the
unique welcome of cultural and typically mountain villages, such as Vale de
Papas, Bustelo da Lage, Aveloso and Gralheira (among others). Pico do
Talegre - rocky elevation with a geodesic landmark, is the highest point in
the municipality which, at 1382m, is covered with unique natural landscapes.
In winter, the rain opens paths down the mountain, forming waterfalls and
lakes that, when the temperature is negative, become ice mirrors. Snow is
also a strong point that transforms the landscape, which thus undergoes
mutations during the four seasons of the year.
The Bestança valley,
which runs alongside the river of the same name, exudes genuineness that is
revealed in a perfect conservation of natural heritage, biodiversity,
rurality and ethnography unaltered by time. The terraces of pasture and
agricultural culture skilfully molded between the landscape, the cobbled
water mills, the bridges in local wood and the stone houses with overlapping
wood, are unique examples of the popular and traditional architecture of
Cinfães. In this valley, full of waterfalls and landscapes of unparalleled
beauty, there is also a large amount of medieval remains and pre-Roman
pavements that delimit the routes and pedestrian sections with a natural
vocation.
In addition to hunting and fishing as leisure activities
and leisure pursuits, Cinfães also offers fantastic conditions for
recreational and competitive nautical practice, above all due to the perfect
layout of the Carrapatelo Albufeira and the respective mooring and mooring
points: Porto Antigo and Escamarão.
For all that is associated with
it, Cinfães is, as the poet says, "the pleasant region where the Gods strive
for favors...". (João Saraiva).
monuments
Serpa Pinto Museum
Category: Archaeology; Typology:
Museum.
Location: Rua Dr. Flávio Resende, no. 34 - Cinfães
Located
in one of the oldest areas of the village, surrounding the garden named
after the illustrious explorer from Cinfan, it was inaugurated on April
20, 2000 and has contributed to a new cultural dynamic. The building
where the "Museu Serpa Pinto" currently operates - the primary home of
the explorer himself, did not have a construction from scratch that
would allow the elaboration of museum-like structures. As such, the
space was rebuilt and reorganized in order to be able to create a
conservation, promotion and research museum, within the existing
dimensions.
From the open exhibitions, the visitor can appreciate
some of the most important assets that belonged to the intrepid explorer
from Cinfanna - Serpa Pinto, such as copies of the first editions of his
books, telegrams, personal and professional objects, reproductions of
uniforms, etc.; the archaeological collection resulting from excavations
and investigations carried out in some parishes of the county and
concerning remains from the time of the expansion of the Roman Empire;
and the oriental legacy kindly provided by the couple from Cinfan: Maria
Amélia and Isidro Teixeira.
In addition to these, the Serpa Pinto
Museum operates, temporarily, the Tourist Office, for promotion and any
type of information, as well as the local Handicraft Shop aimed at
tourists and/or visitors.
Romanesque Church of Escamarão
Category: Religious Architecture; Typology: Church
Location: Lugar de
Escamarão, 4690 Cinfães
Situation: Classified; Category: Property of
Public Interest
The Church of Nossa Senhora da Natividade in
Escamarão is located in the Parish of Souselo, which in medieval times
was one of the most important Coutos in the region.
The Church, in
Romanesque style and completely paved with stones, was built on the site
of a convent of the Canons Regtrantes de Santo Agostinho, founded around
1150. Built in the 12th century style, it has a longitudinal plan,
consisting of the juxtaposition of the nave's rectangles and the
chancel. It has articulated volumes and horizontal layout of the masses,
with the roofs being differentiated from one- and two-story roofs. The
main façade has an access portal with a pointed arch with archivolts
decorated with stylized flowers and spheres, supported by imposts, a
central crevice, corbels and a hollow arch in the middle with a bell. On
the north side of the church there is a basement for leveling the floor,
two crevices, a corbel and a cornice. In a more distant plane, the body
of the nave, composed of a rose window and an angular cut that, at the
same level as the lateral corbels, limits the cut of the main façade. On
the south side, the arched portal is pointed and supported by imposts,
corbels, corbels and cornice, while the body of the chancel is also at a
more recessed level, comprising a crevice, corbels and cornice.
Romanesque Church of Tarouquela
Category: Religious Architecture;
Typology: Church
Location: Monastery – Tarouquela (next to the EN 222
road), 4690 Cinfães
Situation: Classified; Category: National
Monument
The Church, in Romanesque style and completely paved, dates
back to the 12th and 13th centuries, but can also be inserted in the
17th century, as it was modified and remodeled during that period. The
Church has an irregular longitudinal plan composed of articulated
volumes – a single nave, bell tower, chancel and adjoining chapel on the
left side of the chancel. The main façade has a portico with a pointed
arch, six colonnades with carved capitals and three archivolts. On the
sides, the church has a blind bell tower and a belfry with an arch in
the center, topped with a cornice, pinnacles and a pyramid roof crowned
by a metallic ball and cross. The body of the chancel has a decorated
frieze, two fenestrations with a pointed arch, corbels supporting the
cornice, and an existing polylobed oculus in the body of the side
chapel. The south side is marked by the body of the bell tower and the
access staircase. The lateral portico has a pointed arch and a tympanum,
a frieze and two fenestrations with a pointed arch, the cornice
supported by a corbel. The frontage rises from the transept's buttress
and is torn by an ogival door made of logs and half reeds in the
internal archivolts. The cantilevers of the cornice are decorated with
phyto and zoomorphic motifs.
Church of S. Christopher of Nogueira
Category: Religious Architecture; Typology: Church
Location: São
Cristóvão de Nogueira (Next to the EN 222 road), 4690 Cinfães
Status:
In classification phase
The church, late Romanesque, is mentioned in
the parish memoirs of 1748, nothing empirical being known at an earlier
date. With roots and medieval origins, this temple was renovated in the
Mannerist and Baroque periods. It comprises a single nave with a high
choir and chancel, which is lower and narrower, and has a tower with
pinnacles and a spire. In true medieval fashion, it features thick walls
and few openings to light, pointed portals and arches resting on
protruding imposts with archivolts decorated with spheres and corbels,
and cantilevered anthropomorphic and zoomorphic decorations. Inside the
chevet there are traces of a previous construction, which disappeared
with the rebuilding of the chancel in the 17th century. XVIII, and the
wall of the north elevation is embedded a frieze with geometric
decoration - possibly from the primitive church that gave rise to it.
Outside, next to the south portal, there is a cross. Inside, you can
admire coffered wooden ceilings with hagiographic scenes and gilded
altars in national and rococo styles.
Festivities of St. John
The Municipality of Cinfães has been
assuming, annually, the organization of the Municipality's festivities
in honor of the patron saint S. João Baptista.
During the days
leading up to the festivities, the municipality prepares a program,
usually daring, with the presence of several of the best national
artists, which, for four days, gives the village unusual movement and
color, with thousands of people, including inhabitants, visitors and
tourists who circulate there, attracted by the various events on the
poster, which has become much publicized and appreciated year after
year.
The festivities, which are already a reference in the
region, reach their high point on the night of the 22nd to the 23rd of
June, with the traditional parade of popular marches, which normally has
the participation of five parishes in the Municipality, chosen at random
each year. . Each one of them incorporates a theme of your choice,
parading a choreography for the spectators present in the streets of the
village.
In addition to the cultural animation promoted by the
municipality, the festivities traditionally associated with religion to
the patron saint - S. João Baptista, are added, such as the celebration
of the solemn mass, which is very popular and rich, the majestic
procession; the sanjoanina waterfall, the release of balloons, the
fireworks show as well as the traditional grilling of meat and fish,
which liven up the streets of the village so well, complete the range of
festivities.
The growing participation of the public from outside
the municipality has been, more and more, a factor that reinforces the
idea of joint commitment in an action that has been proving to be of
strong attractive power, marked by the genuineness, quality and variety
of traditions that best characterize Cinfães and its county and that can
be experienced there for a week.
Expo Montemuro
The aspects
that most stand out and that most enrich Cinfães' business card are,
without a doubt, handicrafts and regional cuisine.
In terms of
gastronomy, Arouquesa steak, abalone rice, kid roasted in a wood oven,
greaves, lamprey rice, are some of the countless offers that are washed
down with the famous green wine of Cinfães.
As for traditional
confectionery, it is mandatory to try the butter sweets (matulos), the
dry soup, the ants, and the crushed chestnut falachas.
In
handicrafts, emphasis is placed on basketry, headgear, tin and burel,
and also reference for weaving: linen and wool, among others of similar
value.
All of this can be appreciated and used throughout the
year, especially in the summer, during Expo Montemuro, the former
Cinfães Wine, Handicraft and Gastronomy fair, which was 22 years old and
for political reasons changed its name in 2014, making it -the less
traditional.
A gastronomic event with an artisan show, with
endless catering and entertainment, and where any group or family can
try the most diverse local dishes – prepared by excellent restaurants,
and taste the region’s green wine – guided by local producers .
With roots in prehistory, the population evidence of
Cinfães is based on the pre-Celtic Paleolithic period (the age of
chipped stone), with nomadic peoples of African origin: Capsenses and
Berbers, who spread across Iberia and left traces of value in the
municipality area. The first Celtic occupation took place in the 9th and
8th centuries BC, whose mixture with settled peoples resulted in the
Lusitanians of the Iron Age, who moved to the mountains in order to
settle in strategic positions of protection against constant invasions.
It is on these slopes of the municipality that, even today, there
are numerous secular castros of megalithic origin.
In the 6th
century BC, with the Douro River as a commercial route to the Greek
market, the Hispanics arrived who, due to the commercial advantage of
the river, quickly lost their territory to the Romans. It was during
this phase that the first settlements grew in the form of towns and
cities, all interconnected by medieval roads and bridges that are still
in good condition in the municipality.
It is in the year 409 AD,
that the new barbarians, Swabians, Alans and Vandals appear, and in 456,
they start the wars with the Visigoths with the aim of taking the
Iberian territory. Also in 711 there are some Arab traces that only
change definitions of toponymy – so it is believed that there was no
interest in taking over the region.
The documented high-medieval
history dates back to the 10th century as the high point of Cinfães'
chronology, with Santiago de Piães as the most important element. Due to
the territory’s influence on his life, Afonso Henriques ends up leaving
part of his assets to Herdade Real de Tarouquela – parish of Cinfães.
Of the following important points, we highlight the inquiries of D.
Afonso III (1258) and D. Diniz (1288), and the Charter delivered by D.
Manuel I in Lisbon, on 1 May 1513. The comarca of Cinfães was later
created by decree of October 24, 1855 with the parishes of its
municipality and those of Sanfins da Beira – then extinct.
Of the
distinguished characters from Cinfa over time, the one who stood out the
most in national history was Serpa Pinto – a native of Tendais. A career
military man, he was chosen to lead a scientific expedition to Africa,
which would have the objective of crossing the African continent from
the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean – which he surpassed with the greatest
European success, having been recognized for his value to the geographic
society and respective knowledge. /cartography of the territory hitherto
undiscovered.
The population of the municipality of Cinfães has been
decreasing continuously since the second half of the 20th century,
namely from the 1950s onwards (with around 35,400 inhabitants), a fact
that can be explained by the migratory movements that took place in the
periods of democratic implementation and liberalization of markets. Of
the most significant elements of the second half of the 20th century.
(with losses in the order of 9700) subtract the 1990s with a decrease of
around 3700 inhabitants.
In terms of spatial distribution, that
is, the relative density of the inhabitants of a given area, the
Municipality of Cinfães presents a heterogeneous distribution with a
tendency towards concentration in rural and urban housing areas, which
are more attractive for settlement. With about 90.4 inhabitants per km²
(2002), the Municipality of Cinfães has a low population density -
indicating a territory with high natural potential for tourism.
The area of the municipality of Cinfães has a
trapezoidal configuration of about 238 Km2, delimited by the rivers
Douro (to the north), Paiva (to the west) and Cabrum (to the east), and
the Serra de Montemuro mountain range delimits its entire extension to
South.
Regarding the Territorial Unit classifications, Cinfães is
part of NUT III of Tâmega and Sousa, where it borders the municipalities
of Baião and Marco de Canaveses (to the north), Resende (to the east),
Castro Daire (to the south), Arouca (to the south), to the southwest)
and Castelo de Paiva (to the west). The municipality of Cinfães, with
boundaries defined by the Decree of 24 October 1855, comprises 17
parishes, with areas between 5.81 and 38.48 km. In terms of area per
parish, there are some contrasts, an example of which is the case of
Nespereira, which has an area about seven times larger than the parish
of Espadanedo.
The municipality of Cinfães is crossed by several
water courses. Coming from the Serra da Lapa, the Paiva River flows in a
meandering valley. To the east we have the Cabrum River, with NWW/SSE
orientation, suffering a small detour to the North, already in the final
part of its valley. It rises near the Montemuro mountain range and flows
into the Douro river, in the Oliveira do Douro region. Almost
perpendicular to the Douro River and with a rectilinear layout, oriented
along the NNW -SSE course, runs the Bestança River, the largest river
exclusively in Cinfanna. .
The water courses, thanks to the humid
climate that the condensation barrier of the Serra de Montemuro provides
them, have water throughout the year. The fact that the riverbeds are,
for the most part, quite inclined, gives them a torrential regime,
particularly in the wettest season, with their flows being lower in the
summer.
It is a dense hydrographic network, with a rigid layout,
where two directions predominate (NNE/SSW and NW/SE). It should also be
noted the hydroelectric use of some of these courses, namely the Cabrum
River and the Douro River, where one of its most imposing dams is built
- the Carrapatelo Dam.
Mountainous and rugged area with vigorous relief and
deep valleys. The great morphological element of the landscape is the
Serra de Montemuro, essentially granite. The granite blocks of
innumerable shapes, detached from the surface, by the ice and thaw, by
the mechanical action of the abundant running water and other erosive
agents, characterize the roughness of the landscape at the top of the
mountain.
This mountain has a clearly dissymmetrical
configuration in the north-south direction, suggesting a mountain swing
towards the Douro. The county's contrasting relief is made up of very
sloping slopes, flattened tops and terraces towering over the valleys.
Different levels of flattening can be observed, the ones on the eastern
side of the mountain being more prominent. Different levels of planing
can even be distinguished: Summits - at altitudes around 1350m. Its
highest point is located at 1382m - Talegre. From here you can enjoy a
vast landscape of extraordinary beauty, with views of the mountains of
São Macário, Caramulo, Estrela, the crests of Leonil, Sr.ª da Lapa and
Pisco.
Intermediate - consisting of levels located at 900-1000m
altitude.
Lower - at 500-600m of altitude, formed by rechãs that
appear on the bank of the river Cabrum and along the valley of the river
Bestança.
The northern slope of the Serra de Montemuro has a
slope of around 6 to 7% before reaching the Douro valley, whose slopes
start at around 500m. The southern slope is steeper, standing out almost
for the absence of levels, between the top and the Paiva valley. The
slope reaches average values of around 18%.
The municipality of Cinfães is a mountainous area. Its two major
morphological traits are the voluminous mountain massif that makes up
the Serra de Montemuro, whose summit reaches 1382 meters and the Douro
valley that limits the county to the north. Arranged from west to east
are the valleys of Paiva, Piães stream, Sampaio stream, Bestança and
Cabrum. The Douro River runs from East to West in a wide valley with
very steep slopes where the difference in level can reach 600 m. To the
East opens the valley of the Paiva River, with a NW/SE direction,
inflecting in a N/S direction before flowing into the Douro River. It is
a wide valley shaped like the bottom of a boat, with slopes that descend
gradually from 600 to 300-350 meters in altitude, whose meandering
layout and strong longitudinal slope give great speed to the circulation
of the Paiva waters. The valleys of Santiago de Piães and São Cristóvão
de Nogueira, drained by the Piães and Sampaio streams, respectively, are
pronounced, not closely fitted, sectioning the NE/SW aligned elevations,
with a flattened top and longitudinally elongated (Castro Daire , 721m
and Gia, 800m) . With a NNE/SSW direction, runs the River Bestança. Its
narrow, rectilinear and deep valley has 300-400m unevenness, with an
extension of about 15 km. Parallel to this valley, the Cabrum valley
appears with an orientation similar to that of Bestança. There is a
contrast between riverside areas along the Douro and Paiva where valley
bottoms of less than 50 meters predominate and the interior of the
municipality with mountain areas above 1000 meters. There is a
staggering of the elevations as you walk SE, with an increase in
altitude, culminating in the highest part of the Serra de Montemuro. The
two major trends that the relief presents are the progressive increase
in altitude from the banks of the Douro towards the interior and the
staggering of elevations, roughly from W to E.
The steep slope
from the mountains to the river, and the tributaries that have marked
their courses there, determine a high number of slopes and valleys that
condition farming since Roman times. With land of great extension for
irrigation and grazing, the parcels are, generally, divided by upland
slopes and stony portions.
Due to the high variation in altitude, the municipality of Cinfães presents strong thermal and rainfall contrasts between the Douro valley and the top of the Serra de Montemuro. The climate on the left bank of the Douro River valley is, in general, temperate: it varies constantly between 0 °C. at the edge of winter and 30 °C. in summer, being moderate in the autumn and spring seasons. The Montemuro mountain chain, with rigorous winters of negative temperatures, shows an annual average of 12.5 °C. with moderate winds in all seasons. Due to the amount of water absorbed during the winter and rainy seasons, the climate is generally humid.
The Municipality of Cinfães, with a rural and artisanal origin, is
far from a productive value chain, presenting low values of labor
available for the production of goods and services that enhance the
economic circuit. Of this, only about 42% of the population subsists on
income from their work, with the remainder dependent on social income
and retirement/pensions. However, due to its suitability for a secondary
focus, the Municipality had, in 2003, around 1500 companies in active
operation with an advantage for retail trade (623), civil construction
(308), transformation industry (128) and hotels/restaurants (114).
As a critical success factor, farming with the Arouquesa breed
stands out. Recently, the tourist segment has emerged as a business
opportunity, namely in terms of gastronomy and wines, nature tourism
(Serra de Montemuro and Vale do Bestança) and nautical tourism (Douro
River), based on the creation of complementary means of restoration and
accommodation, and activities/sports development companies.
purchasing power
Of the 308 municipalities in the country, the
inhabitants of Cinfães are the ones with the lowest purchasing power at
national level, according to the study on Municipal Purchasing Power,
for 2013, by the National Institute of Statistics.
Cinfães has a centuries-old foundation, having the first charter
granted by King Manuel I, dated May 1, 1513. Comprising a mountainous
part and a riverside part, this county spreads out along the northern
slope of the back of Montemuro. The Serra de Montemuro and the Douro
River valley are two key morphological axes, which give this
municipality landscape characteristics of unparalleled beauty and
diversity.
Serra de Montemuro offers the unique welcome of
cultural and typically mountain villages, such as Vale de Papas, Bustelo
da Lage, Aveloso and Gralheira (among others). Pico do Talegre - rocky
elevation with a geodesic landmark, is the highest point in the
municipality which, at 1382m, is covered with unique natural landscapes.
In winter, the rain opens paths down the mountain, forming waterfalls
and lakes that, when the temperature is negative, become ice mirrors.
Snow is also a strong point that transforms the landscape, which thus
undergoes mutations during the four seasons of the year.
The
Bestança valley, which runs alongside the river of the same name, exudes
genuineness that is revealed in a perfect conservation of natural
heritage, biodiversity, rurality and ethnography unaltered by time. The
terraces of pasture and agricultural culture skilfully molded between
the landscape, the cobbled water mills, the bridges in local wood and
the stone houses with overlapping wood, are unique examples of the
popular and traditional architecture of Cinfães. In this valley, full of
waterfalls and landscapes of unparalleled beauty, there is also a large
amount of medieval remains and pre-Roman pavements that delimit the
routes and pedestrian sections with a natural vocation.
In
addition to hunting and fishing as leisure activities and leisure
pursuits, Cinfães also offers fantastic conditions for recreational and
competitive nautical practice, above all due to the perfect layout of
the Carrapatelo Albufeira and the respective mooring and mooring points:
Porto Antigo and Escamarão.
For all that is associated with it,
Cinfães is, as the poet says, "the pleasant region where the Gods strive
for favors…". (João Saraiva).
Bestança river
The Bestança
river is one of the greatest natural examples of our generations. As a
pure element and without any human action to alter it, it fully
associates its natural characteristics with the remarkable moments of
man's enjoyment, minimized to cattle transhumance routes and use of the
driving force of water for flours and yeasts. The hydrographic basin is
represented in charts 136 and 146 of the Cartographic Services of the
Army,[10] framed, in its entirety, in the administrative area of the
Municipality of Cinfães. It rises at Portas do Montemuro, at an altitude
of 1229 meters and runs along slopes and terraces for a distance of
about 13.5 km until it empties at 100 meters in Porto Antigo, as a
tributary of the Douro River.
The abundance of water from the
affluent courses, provided by the granite substratum of the entire
valley, imprints a natural green hue on all the banks, skilfully shaped
into pasture terraces that transmit a rich landscape of enormous value
and attractive potential.
It is due to all the potential and
richness of the valley that the course of the Bestança river is full of
traces of occupation by medieval and pre-medieval peoples who, without
any damage to the green and natural element that now predominates,
settled here for many years. .