the schist is here, but hidden under the whitewash
It's a schist village, but it looks white from a distance. Álvaro is one of the so-called 'white villages' in the Aldeias do Xisto network: the structure is schist, but the facades are plastered and whitewashed, with openings painted in bold colours that cut through the tone. It stretches along the slope above the Zêzere river, on the Cabril reservoir.
The second reason to visit is the history. Between 1194 and 1457, for 263 years, Álvaro was a commandery of the Order of Malta. The presence remained: the Igreja Matriz has a holy water font with the Order's cross carved into it, and the Casa dos Hospitalários (which is thought to have been the Commander's house) has another cross, this one on the schist frontage. There are also several chapels scattered around the village; the circuit is done on foot.
The Igreja da Misericórdia is the most significant religious landmark. The village lost administrative autonomy in 1836 with Mouzinho da Silveira and was incorporated into Oleiros, but the marks of the earlier era remain visible on every corner. Come for a morning, follow the chapels circuit, and end the afternoon at the Praia Fluvial Álvaro, on the bank of the Zêzere the village overlooks from above.
good to know
- 'white village': schist structure but whitewashed facades with coloured openings
- commandery of the order of malta for 263 years (1194-1457), with marks in the font and on facades
- igreja da misericórdia, igreja matriz, casa dos hospitalários and several chapels
- stretches along the slope above the zêzere, on the cabril reservoir
- lost administrative autonomy in 1836, with mouzinho da silveira
