Ermida da Memória da Nazaré
Memory Hermitage, also known as the Chapel of Our Lady of Nazaré, is a small four‑sided chapel on the edge of the Nazaré promontory in Portugal. It is decorated with blue and white tiles and has a pyramidal roof.
Legend says it was built in 1182 by knight Dom Fuas Roupinho after Our Lady saved him from falling from the cliff while he chased a deer. The statue of Our Lady was originally placed near a grotto by King Roderic (Visigoth) after bringing it from Mérida in 714 with a monk named Romano. The statue survived centuries of Muslim rule and was found in a cave in 1179, which led to the hermitage being built.
In 1616 historian Bernardo de Brito searched for the cave and found the basement. It is said that anyone who went too far into the cave disappeared, so a wall and grids were put up and only the entrance with the image is visible today.
The chapel was designed so the image could be seen from land and sea on four sides; the arches were closed by Ferdinand I in 1370 due to deterioration. Above the doorway is a tile panel with Portugal’s coat of arms. A limestone bas-relief on the cornice shows the Virgin with the Child, St. Brás, St. Bartholomew, and Dom Rodrigo with monk Romano; the original bas-relief is in the Rector Luis Nesi Museum.
The outside facade opposite the beach has tiles showing episodes from the legend. Inside, the 17th‑century tiles cover the walls; master António Oliveira Bernardes added figures and Marian symbols. There are two floors connected by a six‑step staircase of lioz stone; the lower floor has a small window near where the statue stood. In the crypt vault, a tile panel tells the miracle of the rescue by Our Lady of Nazaré.
Two inscriptions on the walls recount Bernardo de Brito’s Latin text about Our Lady and the origin of the cult in these places, and a translation of it. The Our Lady of the Conception image was moved from the altar to the Rector Luis Nesi Museum to protect it.
The hermitage is a public interest site administered by the Patriarchate of Lisbon.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 19:03 (CET).