Queluz I, a photo from Lisboa, South

Photographer's Note

Once again, this is a restoration of an old, faded and damaged slide. I felt a little hesitation about daring to add to the TE’s collection of Queluz images, many of which are very fine. However, I was persuaded for two reasons. First, I cannot find another shot from the viewpoint of today’s post, which shows the façade of the ballroom wing with its ogee arch -- designed by an unknown architect and reminiscent of Borromini. This wing with its varying rooflines and swooping pediments illustrates the palace's appearance as a series of pavilions and wings rather than one large mass. Secondly. there have been some changes as restoration and maintenance work has proceeded. For example, new roof tiles on some sections of the palace are much brighter than the ones they replaced – according to both my memory and my faded slides, significantly affecting the appearance and also, I suspect, the ambiance of the place.

Sometimes described as an expression of the extravagant period of Portuguese culture that followed the discovery of Brazilian gold in 1690, to my eyes, Queluz is one of the most elegant, refined and charming palaces I’ve visited. The following background on this lovely place is drawn from a variety of sources, including the current Wikipedia article.

The Palácio Naçional de Queluz was first built in the 17th century as a manor house for King Pedro II but between 1747 and 1794 was enlarged and transformed into a graceful country palace for Pedro III and his wife, later Queen Maria I.

Construction, under architect Mateus Vicente de Oliveira, went rapidly from 1747 until 1755 when it was interrupted by the Great Lisbon Earthquake. The subsequent urban rebuilding process stimulated development of the arts in Portugal. The new ideas and concern for greater seismic safety led to adaptation of the central block when work resumed in 1758. They also influenced the later additions, begun in 1760 by Jean Baptiste Robillon, who also designed many of the rooms and the Rococo gardens. The latter contain elaborate fountains, grottoes and sculptures, some of them in lead cast in England. In the lower part of the gardens is the Ribeira de Jamor basin, 115m long and beautifully faced with azulejos, where the royal family went boating.
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The palace’s design adaptations produced low, long buildings that were more structurally stable than a single high block. The result is that from a distance the palace resembles long enfilades linked by higher pavilions rather than one single construction. This fact and the mix of neo-classic and uniquely Portuguese Rococo styles account, in my view, for the architecture's feeling of relative intimacy and light-heartedness by comparison with many other great palaces.

From 1826, the palace slowly fell from favour with the Portuguese sovereigns. In 1908, it became the property of the state. Following a serious fire in 1934, which gutted the interior and destroyed many of the contents, the palace was extensively restored. From 1940 it became open as a museum, housing much of the former royal collection of furniture, Arraiolos carpets, paintings, and Chinese and European ceramics and porcelain. In 1957, the "Dona Maria Pavilion," built in the palace's east wing between 1785 and 1792 by the architect Manuel Caetano de Sousa, was transformed into a guest house for visiting heads of state.

More recently, transportation (the Lisbon-Sintra motorway) and tourism have supported maintenance and improvement of the palace and today Queluz is well preserved. Its principal rooms are now not only museums but settings for official entertaining. The palace and the gardens are open to the public as a major tourist attraction and in the summer months host classical music concerts, as part of the Sintra music festival, and equestrian shows.

Clementi, Budapestman, xuaxo, snunney, jlbrthnn, paura, AiresSantos, Royaldevon, photoray, pablominto, pajaran, paololg, delpeoples, Longroute, Charo, Sonata11 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

ribeiroantonio (22730) 2010-01-31 22:40

It is a quite nice shot in spite of the abundant noise all over.
What I really like in this work is the excellent note. Congratulations,
Antonio

sacavem (18620) 2010-02-01 2:48

Olá Mary,

The architecture on this facade is glorious. Your very sharp photo shows the detail up very clearly. Thank you for sharing.
Regards,
Filipe

dta (95520) 2010-02-01 5:10

Hello Mary ,
Once again ... an excellent result for your work . The quality is pretty good , and the POV and framing are really perfect .
Regards

Ola_Kwiatek (0) 2010-02-01 5:28

Wonderful garden, excellent palace of Queluz. Nice colors. Very fine capture and original frame. Good info.
Cheers

gilou530 (34) 2010-02-01 13:23

salut mary
une photo trés lumineuse et d'une belle netteté dans ce cadrage , un bon travail
amitiés
gilbert

Clementi (52514) 2010-02-02 1:26

Ciao Mary,
un altra bella immagine dal tuo immenso archivio, molto bella la vista di questo palazzo con il suo meraviglioso giardino, ottima la qualita' della scansione.
Giorgio

Budapestman (82620) 2010-02-02 9:05

Hi Mary,
a beautiful photo of this elegant architecture, the composition is attractive, the colours and lights are very nice, the park in the foreground is beautiful likewise, Tfs! Have a nice day!
George

xuaxo (6854) 2010-02-02 13:16

Hi Mary,
Beautiful photo indeed. I like very much its light and color (even if it looks "old").
The garden in foreground add for a good composition.
Greetings,
Francisco

AKITA (15125) 2010-02-02 16:41

dear Mary,
a wonderful picture of splendid old house and well maintained garden,
the appearance is very gracefully and beautifully designed, and green plants are matching it nicely,
your capturing is settled and expressing the peaceful atmosphere there,
thank you for your excellent shot,
Akhisa

snunney (130965) 2010-02-03 1:17

Hello Mary,
The point of view is well chosen to take full advantage of the exquisite topiary work and yet still provide us with a good view of the palace. The green tones makes a fine contrast with the beige and yellow tones of the architecture. Overall, a successful digitisation of this image well worth seeing.

Silvio1953 (191151) 2010-02-04 2:07

Ciao Mary, great view of splendid buildin in a fantastic garden, good POV, splendid light and colors, very well done, ciao Silvio

jlbrthnn (76041) 2010-02-05 6:25

Hello Mary,
It is an image of architecture made in the artistic rules. The point of view and framing are perfect. The light and the colors are very natural, clearness is excellent. Cheer.
Have a nice day
Cordially
Joël

diomed (13926) 2010-02-05 10:08

Hi Mary,
amazing perspective, beautifull architecture, excellent POV, lovely light, soft and nice colours, perfect composition.
NIce WE
Antonio

ciakgiak (30) 2010-02-06 11:17

Ciao Mary,
la facciata di questa costruzione è bellissima, ma ciò che più mi colpisce è il bellissimo contesto nel quale l'hai inserita. Colori e situazioni molto piacevoli e nitidi, enfatizzati da una splendida luce.
Un caro abbraccio.
Giorgio

paura (25796) 2010-02-08 14:19

Mary,
The architecture presented is very beautiful and you show and excellent coposição gallery, with adequate volumetric aspects and be adjusted photometry. Beautiful work.

regards

Paulo

AiresSantos (56155) 2010-02-09 0:24

Hi Mary
Beautiful picture of National Palace of Queluz long time ago
Nice colours and POV
Have a nice day
Aires

francio64 (39888) 2010-02-09 13:03

Ciao Mary,
bella immagine, sicuramente di qualità superiore alle tue foto precedenti.
Mi piace il POV con le piante in primo piano e il bel palazzo sullo sfondo.
Dimostri di avere gusto per la composizione.

Ottima anche la luce e lo sharp.

I like it!
Francesco

archimatica (20648) 2010-02-09 13:51

Very elegant building, quality and pov of the picture are perfect.
Regards
Renzo

Royaldevon (64274) 2010-02-11 1:13

Hello Mary,

As you point out, there are difficulties with old photos, however, the fine composition and the beautiful details shine through.
Your notes are detailed and interesting.

Happy photographing,
Bev :-)

TopGeo (38220) 2010-02-15 11:17

Hello Mary,An architectural picture with the palace in a striking composition! an excellent result for your work. The quality is pretty good,details clarity and colours wonderful and the POV and framing are really perfect. Thanks for sharing!
Regards

photoray (13981) 2010-02-21 14:23 [Comment]

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pablominto (53746) 2010-03-07 7:59

Hello Mary,

This is a well balanced composition, presenting this fine piece of architecture in the best possible way!
The greenery makes a fine framing of the view to the building, the colours are well reproduced so are the details in the house...
Well done on the technical post processing!

Greetings,
Pablo -

pajaran (92082) 2010-03-10 0:32

Pozdrav.
Lepa stara arhitektura sa zelenim parkom, dobar prikaz tekstom, lepim bojama i fotografijom, dobar rad.
Lep dan, Paja.

Google.

Hello.
Beautiful old architecture with a green park, a good view of the text, colors and beautiful photography, good work.
Nice day, Paja.

paololg (31448) 2010-03-10 13:52

Ciao dear Mary,
slide of 1992? Unbelievable! Excellent work done with the scanner, but probably the merit is also due to the perfect image captured 18 years ago. Pleasant brightness and good sharp, seem a photo captured with a digital camera! Compliments, dear friend!
Ciao, have a beautiful day!
Paolo

delpeoples (60326) 2010-03-12 4:15

Hi Mary, you captured such a beautiful piece of architecture and history. The colours are very rich and the image is pin-sharp. I also like the perspective created by the curves in the hedge and the pathway. Great job, TFS and I wish you a lovely weekend, Lisa

romanaa (8298) 2010-03-12 7:07

Hello Mary,
I think you have done a great job, I would not guess this is a scanned picture.
Beautiful architecture and precise tree cut in the formal garden, balanced composition and natural colours make your shot very attractive.

Best wishes

Romana

LOOOK13 (19046) 2010-03-13 14:30

Bonsoir Mary.
Belle photo architecturale, tres belle netteté, un cadrage parfait, couluers naturelles.
Pour ma part j'aurais ajouté un point de contraste...
Bravo.

Longroute (19600) 2010-03-16 3:21

This a very good composition and a fine photo Mary,
you really framed well this ancient palace and its lovely garden. Also the light and colours are quite appealing and the overall quality is good enough for being a scan.
TFS,
Donato

Charo (51212) 2010-04-27 10:23

Hello Mary,
Beautiful view of this beautiful palace and beautiful gardens that make this point of contrast between nature and architecture.
Excellent detail and color.
Sincerely,
Charo

Hans_Dunkelberg (0) 2012-09-18 4:06

This photo is greatly composed. The trees serving as structuring elements in the foreground resp. the middle-ground seem to grow out of the picture like parts of the facade of the building. This facade appears, thus embedded into the green, living organisms of the garden in front of it, to gain LIFE, itself. The palace and the bushes, together, seem to reach into our present from some dim, cloudy epoch of the PAST, and this effect, from the very first moment we look at the picture, conjures up an atmosphere as uncanny as lively and realistic.

Sonata11 (34119) 2013-02-20 20:52 [Comment]

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chrisvek (7003) 2013-02-21 1:26

Hello Mary

Awesome capture with great colors and so interesting architectural details.Superb framework and POV!Well done!

Have a great day
Chris