a small museum for the priest who was also an artist
Monsenhor Augusto Nunes Pereira was born in 1906 in the village of Mata, parish of Fajão-Vidual, and was more than a priest. He was a painter, sculptor, printmaker, writer, ethnographer. The museum that bears his name opened in 1997 in the village of Fajão, in the schist of the Serra do Açor.
The collection covers his various crafts. It has woodcuts (what he was best known for), paintings, sculptures, watercolours, wrought iron and stained glass, alongside an ethnographic nucleus that recreates spaces and settings of traditional life in the region. The building itself is traditional construction in schist and wood.
The work that made him most widely known is 'Os Contos de Fajão', a collection of local tales. In 2026 the museum is being refurbished, with the Câmara, the Junta de Freguesia, the Museu Nacional Machado de Castro and the Seminário Maior de Coimbra all involved. Check before you go; when it reopens, it'll have a new narrative.
good to know
- dedicated to monsenhor augusto nunes pereira, priest and artist from fajão
- opened in 1997 in a traditional schist and wood building, in the centre of the village
- collection combines the monsenhor's works (woodcut, painting, sculpture, wrought iron) and an ethnographic nucleus
- 'os contos de fajão' is his best-known work
- museum being refurbished in 2026, check status before visiting
