PALÁCIO DE D. DINIS DE MELLO E CASTRO
(Ruínas)
Colares
Património na Zona Especial de Proteção da Paisagem Cultural de Sintra
D. Dinis de Mello e Castro nasceu em Colares e morreu em Lisboa em 1640. Doutorou-se em Direito Canónico pela Universidade de Coimbra, tendo desempenhado altos cargos na hierarquia eclesiástica. Na sua vila natal, fez erguer sumptuoso paço de recorte maneirista (também conhecido por “Castelo Velho”), cuja construção ter-se-á, porventura, iniciado em cerca de 1620, decerto sobre anciano edifício como o parece comprovar a existência de numerosos fragmentos de pedra com ornamentação manuelina.
Os restos deste palácio que terá ardido em meados do século XIX, foram demolidos nos inícios do século passado para ali se erguer a escola primária. Por conseguinte, da villa de sabor italianizante subsiste, apenas, a arcaria de amplos vãos cegos e a casa da água. A data de 1690 inscrita numa cartouche relevada, indicará, talvez, a época em que se revestiram as paredes exteriores com frescos representando as Quatro Estações.
PALACE OF DINIS DE MELLO E CASTRO
(in ruins)
Colares
Heritage in the Special Protection Site of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra
Dinis de Mello e Castro was born in Colares and died in Lisbon in 1640. He was awarded a doctorate in Canon Law from the University of Coimbra and held high office in the ecclesiastical hierarchy. He commissioned a sumptuous manneristpalace (also known as the "Old Castle") in the village of his birth and upon which construction work probably began circa 1620. The fact that the palace was built on top of the remains of an ancient building is attested by the existence of numerous stone fragments decorated with Manueline motifs.
The remains of this palace, which was destroyed by fire in the mid 19th century, were demolished at the beginning of the last century in order to build a primary school. The only remains of this Italianate style villa are its broad blind archways and “water house”. The date 1690 inscribed in relief on a cartouche probably indicates when the frescoes representing the Four Seasons were painted on itsoutside walls.
