Chapel of Senhor da Rua Nova

The Chapel of Senhor da Rua Nova, also known as the Chapel of Santo Cristo, is located in the parish of Fornos, in the municipality of Freixo de Espada à Cinta, in the Largo de Santo Cristo, at the top of Rua Nova, in a square bordered by other vernacular buildings. Its construction is believed to date back to the 18th century, due to an inscription on the bell tower that indicates the date 1743. However, the name of its architect remains unknown. The Chapel of Senhor da Rua Nova has been classified as a Property of Public Interest since 1984. In the work "As Memórias Paroquiais de 1758" it is reported that this religious temple was used to bury the dead and was run by the residents of the community. It is also known that this chapel is part of a group of eighteenth-century temples in the Bragança region with a similar configuration. The main façade is characterized by its simplicity and little ornamentation. It has a quadrangular plan, a simple volume and a gable roof, ending in a gable truncated by a bell tower, with a door topped by a cross and two volutes. The interior has plastered and white-painted walls, ending in a double cornice of stonework, interspersed with a frieze, rhythmic with voluted corbels, with a barrel vaulted roof forming twenty coffered ceilings, defined by frames with gilded floral decorations, with mural paintings depicting scenes from the Passion of Christ. The festivities in honor of Senhor da Rua Nova are held annually on the first Sunday of September.