Obidos City Gate, a photo from Leiria, North

Photographer's Note

Уbidos is a town and a municipality in the Oeste Subregion in Portugal. The town proper has approximately 3100 inhabitants.

The area of the old town is located on a hilltop, encircled by a fortified wall. Уbidos remains a well-preserved example of medieval architecture; its streets, squares, walls and its castle are a popular tourist destination. The castle now houses a pousada (hotel).

The name "Уbidos" is a Latinised (oppidum, citadel) derivation of the older Celtic "Eburobricio". The municipality had its growth from a Roman settlement near the foothills of an elevated escarpment. The region of Уbidos, extending from the Atlantic to the interior of Estremadura Province along the rivers and lakes has been inhabited since the late Paleolithic. A settlement was constructed by early Celt tribes, that was later a centre of trade for the Phoenicians.

The area was taken from the Moors by the first King of Portugal, Afonso Henriques, in 1148. The retaking of Уbidos was a final stage in the conquest of the Estremadura region, after the settlements of Santarйm, Lisbon and Torres Vedras. Following taking control of the region, the settlement received its first foral (charter) in 1195, during the reign of King Sancho I.

In 1210, King Afonso II gave the title of this village to Queen Urraca. Since then, Уbidos has often been patronized by the Queens of Portugal, giving rise to its informal title as Vila das Rainhas (English: town of the Queens); several royal consorts enriched the village with donations from the Middle Ages until the 16th century.

(Source: Wikipedia)

pajaran, Royaldevon, papagolf21, ikeharel, Fis2, ChrisJ, pierrefonds, jhm, PiotrF, COSTANTINO, mcmtanyel has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

jemaflor (146258) 2018-04-18 23:32

Salut Stephen,
Superbe dйcorations murales avec ces azulejos, trиs bien cadrй sous cet angle, bonne exposition and rendu des dйtails. On admire le lieu.

pajaran (114867) 2018-04-18 23:43

Dobar dan.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepo pokazano, dobar kontrast i ostrina, lepe boje.
Lepa terasa i detalji, lepa slika na zidu.
Zelim vam lep i uspesan dan, sve najbolje.
Paja.

emka (157280) 2018-04-18 23:45

Hello Stephen, Today we are neighbors on TE, but far away on the map:). Nice view of this gate in Obidos, so richly decorated with the blue azulejos. Lovely composition.

Kind regards MAlgo

lousat (138585) 2018-04-19 0:29

Hi Steph,magnificent old entrance to the village,the decorations made in artistic azulejos are always a great show,i like the perspective and the perfect symmetry too,well done! Have a nice day and thanks,Luciano

Royaldevon (85606) 2018-04-19 0:31

Hello Stephen,

This is just a beautiful 'balcony'.
It is so very Portuguese with its tiles used for external decorations but what an effect is achieved!
I really like your close crop, giving us a chance to thoroughly study the sharp details.

Have a lovely day,
Bev :-)
Yes, the spring weather has arrived here, too!
We had the warmest day of the year, so far, and I even progressed to shorts!!!

papagolf21 (152605) 2018-04-19 0:32

Bonjour, cher Stephen,
Un grand merci de nous offrir ces merveilles architecturales et dйcoratives.
C'est un pur rйgal.
Un cadrage parfait avec une note йdifiante.
Amitiйs.
Philippe

Fis2 (169679) 2018-04-19 1:37

Witaj Stephen!
Interesting fragment of city gate.
Curious balcon and ceramik.
Good frame, colors and light.
I like it.
Nice day.
Krzysztof

Silvio1953 (220553) 2018-04-19 2:27

Ciao Stephen, great view of fantastic gate with beautiful decorations, wonderful colors, fine details and splendid sharpness, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

ChrisJ (171194) 2018-04-19 4:14

Salut Stephen,

A fine upward pov with excellent sharpness. This is a superb example of the iconic blue and white Portuguese tiles known as Azulejo. I never knew they were from originally from Delft in Holland then in Spain and finally in Portugal. Tfs!

dkmurphys (79209) 2018-04-19 4:22

Hello,
Impressive arcade with the typical azulejos decorations. A genuine Portuguese scene. Well taken.

Daniel

Sergiom (117241) 2018-04-19 6:48

Bonjour Stephen,

Encore une fois tu nous montre la trиs belle porcelaine qui fait partie intйgrante de la dйcoration extйrieure des maisons de la rйgion. Celle-ci est vraiment trиs йlaborйe.

Amicalement

Serge

Nicou (193806) 2018-04-19 6:53

Hello

avec ces deux lampes quelle vue et captage quelle image et plafond et ce dessin sur le plafond sueprbe captage quelle couleur avec le balcons ces tons bleutй ces dessin fantastique image.
Bravo et amitiй
Nciou

ikeharel (112397) 2018-04-19 7:14

Many thanks Stephen for your critique.
This spot as I remember taking it under an umbrella, is a very narrow and difficult place to get on photo.
Yet, you captured its whole width quite effectively while looking upwards. The Azulejos here are rich and attractive which shown in fine details.
Good afternoon,
Ike

rychem (72187) 2018-04-19 7:50

You have a good eye for such beautiful details, beautiful portal, fantastic decoration, very well captured and composed
regards Ryszard

pierrefonds (113552) 2018-04-19 9:20

Hi Stephen,

The tight frame is putting the gate in evidence. The point of view is showing the details of the gate. The light is giving nice tints to the colors. Have a nice day.

Pierre

jhm (211734) 2018-04-19 9:46

Hello Stephen,

Again a wonderful picture with the bleu decorative wall tiles.
Your picture is very nice with much depth and perspective.
A splendid moment for make this one.
An excellent composition and good presentation.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John.

PiotrF (54246) 2018-04-19 14:24

Hello Stephen,
Interesting view of Obidos City Gate, superb perspective.
I like nice composition, beautiful colours and good quality.
Thank you for informative note.
Fine presentation.
Regards
Piotr

abmdsudi (95869) 2018-04-19 19:14

Hi Stephen
The gorgeous Azulejos blue tiles obviously is a real feast for the eyes showing it aged and charming feel with its amazing workmanship and contrasted superbly by deep brown. So much detail to please the eye and good view point for the shot adding so much to the overall impression. Fabs capture, Congrats
Best regards

Cricri (176) 2018-04-19 23:21

Hello Stephen
Trиs belle dйcorations murales, le cadrage prйcis, bonne lumiиre, dйtails bien rendu, excellente prйsentation
Belle journйe
cricri

carlo62 (81265) 2018-04-20 0:44

Ciao Stephen
che meraviglia, una vera e propria opera d'arte.
Molto bella anche la tua foto che ci fa comprendere il contesto.
Saluti
Carlo

COSTANTINO (115499) 2018-04-22 7:27

Hello dear Stepehn and have a nice time
and a happy new day and new week
Obidos is a strange word for me but according
to your usefulnotes the name Obidos is a
Larinised derivation of the older Celtuc
excellent decoration un the upper part
with unique details and designs
nice view of this gate
regards
Costantino

mcmtanyel (67611) 2018-05-12 22:06

Hello Stephen,
The decorations are beautiful, the azulejos are splendid. I like your framing, too.
Regards,
MT

maloutim (13617) 2018-09-06 5:33

Hi Stephen,
I am always attracted by these marvellous azulejos in Portugal . They are all unique.
This balcony is a real treasure and the ceiling is a very rich mural painting ?
Thanks for sharing and hacve a great day.
Marie-Louise.