We are commemorating the centenary of the Museum of Abade de Baçal and the 150th anniversary of the birth of Francisco Manuel Alves, the abbot of Baçal.
On 13 November 1915, the "Museu Regional de Obras de Arte, Peças Arqueológicas e Numismática de Bragança" (Bragança Regional Museum of Artworks and Archaeological and Numismatic Artefacts) was established in Bragança under the republican ideology, which considered education and culture and, by extension, museums, to be essential elements in affirming the status of the country, with a drive towards literacy, modernisation, and development within Portuguese society.
It opened to the public in 1925 under the direction of Francisco Manuel Alves, who from 1935, the year of his retirement, became its patron. It was for this reason that it was named the Museum of Abade de Baçal, in tribute to the erudite abbot from the Portuguese region of Trás-os-Montes, who was a researcher and the director of the museum until 1935 and who made a sizeable contribution to maintaining and enhancing its collections.
Also of great importance was the work of Raul Teixeira, director of the museum between 1935-1955. He was a great driver of culture in the region and a protector of its heritage, playing a key role in showcasing this patrimony and acquiring a significant part of the collection.
The museum's original collection comprised archaeological and numismatic artefacts and the most significant pieces from the Episcopal Palace. It later received collections from the Abade de Baçal and Raul Teixeira. Over the years, the archive has gradually expanded thanks t o donations, bequests, and acquisitions, with notable examples being the donations by Abel Salazar and the Sá Vargas family in the 1930s, and the bequests from Guerra Junqueiro in 1950 and Trindade Coelho in the early 1960s.
Today, the museum's main collections include Archaeology, Epigraphy, Religious Art, Silverworks, Numismatics, Furniture, Ethnography, and Painting, with standout works being the paintings by Malhoa, Abel Salazar, and a series of drawings by Almada Negreiros.
The exhibition spans nine rooms and is structured along two overarching themes: the history of the North-eastern Transmontano region and memorabilia connected to the old Episcopal Palace.
Of the centenary celebrations that will take place until November 2016, we make special mention of the presentation of this issue of stamps, the organisation of a school competition, the public display of Francisco Manuel Alves's personal archive, and the programme of visits to the museum's storage facilities.
Other events include the publication of the works of Ernesto Sales and Belarmino Afonso's sound recordings; and the exhibitions “Luz e sombra” (Light and shade) with works by Abel Salazar , “Graça Morais no Museu do Abade de Baçal” (Graça Morais at the Abade de Baçal Museum) and “Segundo a Vossa Palavra” (In Accordance with Your Word). There will also be various other exhibitions and a conference entitled "Vida, obra e pensamento de Francisco Manuel Alves, Abade Baçal" (The life, work, and ideas of Francisco Manuel Alves, Abbot of Baçal).
These celebrations do not simply commemorate dates but the "people" who built this project with their enthusiasm, their voices, their generosity, their ideas, their stoicism, and above all their love for their land.
We look forward to this centenary as an opportunity to look back on the past and reflect on the role of creating a vision for the future. A museum that can play an active part in showcasing the region, creating paths towards further development and honouring our identity.
By celebrating the donors, the team, and the visitors, we are marking 100 years in the full knowledge of our responsibility to create the future today.
