Versão portuguesa aqui.

GPS 41.14721314269832, -8.606582906382787

Café Majestic, or Building at Rua de Santa Cartarina, no. 112, is a historic café located on Rua de Santa Catarina, in the city of Porto, in Portugal.

Its relevance comes both from the cultural ambiance that surrounds it, namely the tradition of the café gathering, where various personalities from the city's cultural and artistic life met, as well as from its Art Nouveau identity architecture. In 2011, it was considered the sixth most beautiful cafe in the world.

Café Majestic has been classified as a Property of Public Interest since 1983.

History

Opened on December 17, 1921, under the name "Elite", the café, located at 112 Rua de Santa Catarina, was immediately associated with a certain frequency of distinguished people of the time. One of those present at the inauguration was the pilot Gago Coutinho, who had just returned from a trip to the island of Madeira, and who was enchanted by the splendor of the art nouveau decoration.

The following year the name would change from Elite to Majestic, suggesting Parisian chic, more in line with the clientele it intended to attract, and so popular at the time.

Names such as Teixeira de Pascoaes, José Régio and the philosopher Leonardo Coimbra frequented the café. Later it became a regular place for students and teachers at the Porto School of Fine Arts.

Another of the well-known gatherings that animated him was made up of the sculptor José Rodrigues and the painters Armando Alves, Ângelo de Sousa and Jorge Pinheiro. This group would adopt, due to the course's final classification, the ironic name of "The Four Twenty", and would remain together in a series of exhibitions in Porto, Lisbon and Paris in the period 1968-1971.

In recent years, among many other figures, presidents Mário Soares, Jorge Sampaio, Jacques Chirac and Cavaco Silva have not failed to visit and sign the book of honor. Nowadays it continues to be lively with poetry recitals, piano concerts, painting exhibitions, book launches, and the production of some scenes for national or foreign films. One of the farewell ceremonies to Macau, at the end of the period of Portuguese administration, took place at Café Majestic with the presence of the Chinese Ambassador to Portugal.

In the biography of J.K. Rowling written by Sean Smith, it is mentioned that the writer spent a lot of time at Café Majestic working on the first book "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (although the writer left Porto in 1994 and the book was only published in 1997).

Architectural style

Café Majestic, designed by architect João Queiroz, inspired by the work of master Marques da Silva, remains today one of the most beautiful and representative examples of Art Nouveau in the city of Porto. The building, anchored in 1916 at the angle formed by the streets of Santa Catarina and Passos Manuel, provided, in the descriptive memory of its reconstruction, the existence of "establishments facing the pedestrian street."

The imposing marble façade, adorned with sinuous plant features, reflects the good decorative style of the time. A trio of elegant columns marks the front, limited by a rectangular section, torn in glass. At the top, a pediment crowns the composition with Majestic's initials. Two representations of children flank it, playfully inviting passersby to enter.

Inside the establishment, with a rectangular plan, the Art Nouveau language reigns. The curvilinear symmetry of the wooden frames and decorative details captivate the eye. Large mirrors marked by age, interspersed with worked metal lamps, delimit the walls in an intelligent optical game of amplitude, which gives them a larger-than-life dimension.

Stucco sculptures, representing human faces, naked figures and finials, confirm the undulating and sensual taste, while two lines of engraved leather seats, replacing the original red velvet ones, create, in terms of perspective, a feeling of depth and elegance. comfort.

The sinuous cut of the mirror frames, the luminosity of the lamps, the marble details and the smiling busts that extend from the walls to the ceiling, give it a golden and comfortable ambience, encouraging rest and pleasant conversation. Café Majestic exudes an atmosphere of luxury, refinement and well-being.

The interior courtyard, built in 1925, is a corner with delicate contours, with a small staircase and balustrade, designed as if it were a winter garden. Under the direction of master Pedro Mendes da Silva, this space symbolizes a new era of Café Majestic. The construction of the bar and the connection to the cafe through a staircase, allowed the opening of a new front, that of Rua Passos Manuel, "…where Port wine will be offered for sale. For this, the regional style of our architecture was chosen , not only for the construction of the bar, but also for the fence of the wall."

The new facade was subsequently designed and executed following different templates to those adopted for the interior. If this is to international taste, the new space, without denying it, presents a more rustic style, expressing what Raul Lino later called a Portuguese house.

That same year, Majestic uniquely fulfilled the plural function of satisfying all the desires of its clientele. He called the architect João Queirós again, now to open a modest but graceful window in the remodeled wall, facing Rua Passos Manuel, where he will start selling tobacco and snuff to the population. A year later, in 1926, the space was expanded and given over to the firm Tinoco & Irmãos, building a "small cabin (…) to serve as a tobacconist."

Auspices of new times and habits emerged in 1927, through the expansion of the bar with a view to "serving and supplying beer to the existing terrace".

Space, therefore, appears evolutionary. From a more refined and architectural formulation at the entrance, motivated by the architect's Beaux Arts roots, as we approach the garden we move towards a decorativism that bridges the architectural structures, ending in the Ionic portal connecting to the outside, with large transparent and sensual volutes, typically Art. Nouveau, hinting at the feminine sculptures we glimpse abroad. This, green and bright, is currently used to host concerts during the summer, which is why it has become the Majestic's third cultural center, rivaling the grand piano inside and the numerous painting exhibitions taking place on the lower floor. once devoted to the game of billiards.

Under the aegis of the Barrias, the Café was closed to carry out a renovation project. In 1994, after replacing the interior flooring, replacing the original furniture and designing a new counter, Majestic was reopened, finally restoring its well-deserved notoriety.

Present time.

From the 1960s onwards, the transformation of the pace of life caused the decline of these establishments and Majestic did not escape this fate until the early 1980s.

However, its original beauty and its significance in the city of Porto earned it the classification on January 24, 1983 as a Property of Public Interest and "cultural heritage" of the city, which made it possible to begin a recovery process that , although it took a long time, it allowed the café to reopen in July 1994 in all its former splendour, inviting us to relive the fascinating Belle Époque.

An art gallery was created in the basement for small conferences or exhibitions.

Full list of Geochaching below:

https://mirror.xyz/madeinpt.eth/I5tjF3sn6ugnUw3nBnKOpOUr2DEh_g6cTN-0hivKCgc

*Released*✅ *Reviewed*✅ Approved✅

Curator Body
0x083B4bE22ACA5dC213085F59a639663fB7C6C4d6 0x7Bc11676b7b231D0Fc6E210b185bd85D615310Be 0xfa056236FBC67e1F40B41b987558F48Ab78666e0 0x1336fD9C06456Bd9d00Bc5C36319F3c06c84C759 0xD2a394b1e5690f6cb85220eA8AdD737B26F5db68

Versão portuguesa aqui.

GPS 41.14721314269832, -8.606582906382787

Café Majestic, or Building at Rua de Santa Cartarina, no. 112, is a historic café located on Rua de Santa Catarina, in the city of Porto, in Portugal.

Its relevance comes both from the cultural ambiance that surrounds it, namely the tradition of the café gathering, where various personalities from the city's cultural and artistic life met, as well as from its Art Nouveau identity architecture. In 2011, it was considered the sixth most beautiful cafe in the world.

Café Majestic has been classified as a Property of Public Interest since 1983.

History

Opened on December 17, 1921, under the name "Elite", the café, located at 112 Rua de Santa Catarina, was immediately associated with a certain frequency of distinguished people of the time. One of those present at the inauguration was the pilot Gago Coutinho, who had just returned from a trip to the island of Madeira, and who was enchanted by the splendor of the art nouveau decoration.

The following year the name would change from Elite to Majestic, suggesting Parisian chic, more in line with the clientele it intended to attract, and so popular at the time.

Names such as Teixeira de Pascoaes, José Régio and the philosopher Leonardo Coimbra frequented the café. Later it became a regular place for students and teachers at the Porto School of Fine Arts.

Another of the well-known gatherings that animated him was made up of the sculptor José Rodrigues and the painters Armando Alves, Ângelo de Sousa and Jorge Pinheiro. This group would adopt, due to the course's final classification, the ironic name of "The Four Twenty", and would remain together in a series of exhibitions in Porto, Lisbon and Paris in the period 1968-1971.

In recent years, among many other figures, presidents Mário Soares, Jorge Sampaio, Jacques Chirac and Cavaco Silva have not failed to visit and sign the book of honor. Nowadays it continues to be lively with poetry recitals, piano concerts, painting exhibitions, book launches, and the production of some scenes for national or foreign films. One of the farewell ceremonies to Macau, at the end of the period of Portuguese administration, took place at Café Majestic with the presence of the Chinese Ambassador to Portugal.

In the biography of J.K. Rowling written by Sean Smith, it is mentioned that the writer spent a lot of time at Café Majestic working on the first book "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (although the writer left Porto in 1994 and the book was only published in 1997).

Architectural style

Café Majestic, designed by architect João Queiroz, inspired by the work of master Marques da Silva, remains today one of the most beautiful and representative examples of Art Nouveau in the city of Porto. The building, anchored in 1916 at the angle formed by the streets of Santa Catarina and Passos Manuel, provided, in the descriptive memory of its reconstruction, the existence of "establishments facing the pedestrian street."

The imposing marble façade, adorned with sinuous plant features, reflects the good decorative style of the time. A trio of elegant columns marks the front, limited by a rectangular section, torn in glass. At the top, a pediment crowns the composition with Majestic's initials. Two representations of children flank it, playfully inviting passersby to enter.

Inside the establishment, with a rectangular plan, the Art Nouveau language reigns. The curvilinear symmetry of the wooden frames and decorative details captivate the eye. Large mirrors marked by age, interspersed with worked metal lamps, delimit the walls in an intelligent optical game of amplitude, which gives them a larger-than-life dimension.

Stucco sculptures, representing human faces, naked figures and finials, confirm the undulating and sensual taste, while two lines of engraved leather seats, replacing the original red velvet ones, create, in terms of perspective, a feeling of depth and elegance. comfort.

The sinuous cut of the mirror frames, the luminosity of the lamps, the marble details and the smiling busts that extend from the walls to the ceiling, give it a golden and comfortable ambience, encouraging rest and pleasant conversation. Café Majestic exudes an atmosphere of luxury, refinement and well-being.

The interior courtyard, built in 1925, is a corner with delicate contours, with a small staircase and balustrade, designed as if it were a winter garden. Under the direction of master Pedro Mendes da Silva, this space symbolizes a new era of Café Majestic. The construction of the bar and the connection to the cafe through a staircase, allowed the opening of a new front, that of Rua Passos Manuel, "…where Port wine will be offered for sale. For this, the regional style of our architecture was chosen , not only for the construction of the bar, but also for the fence of the wall."

The new facade was subsequently designed and executed following different templates to those adopted for the interior. If this is to international taste, the new space, without denying it, presents a more rustic style, expressing what Raul Lino later called a Portuguese house.

That same year, Majestic uniquely fulfilled the plural function of satisfying all the desires of its clientele. He called the architect João Queirós again, now to open a modest but graceful window in the remodeled wall, facing Rua Passos Manuel, where he will start selling tobacco and snuff to the population. A year later, in 1926, the space was expanded and given over to the firm Tinoco & Irmãos, building a "small cabin (…) to serve as a tobacconist."

Auspices of new times and habits emerged in 1927, through the expansion of the bar with a view to "serving and supplying beer to the existing terrace".

Space, therefore, appears evolutionary. From a more refined and architectural formulation at the entrance, motivated by the architect's Beaux Arts roots, as we approach the garden we move towards a decorativism that bridges the architectural structures, ending in the Ionic portal connecting to the outside, with large transparent and sensual volutes, typically Art. Nouveau, hinting at the feminine sculptures we glimpse abroad. This, green and bright, is currently used to host concerts during the summer, which is why it has become the Majestic's third cultural center, rivaling the grand piano inside and the numerous painting exhibitions taking place on the lower floor. once devoted to the game of billiards.

Under the aegis of the Barrias, the Café was closed to carry out a renovation project. In 1994, after replacing the interior flooring, replacing the original furniture and designing a new counter, Majestic was reopened, finally restoring its well-deserved notoriety.

Present time.

From the 1960s onwards, the transformation of the pace of life caused the decline of these establishments and Majestic did not escape this fate until the early 1980s.

However, its original beauty and its significance in the city of Porto earned it the classification on January 24, 1983 as a Property of Public Interest and "cultural heritage" of the city, which made it possible to begin a recovery process that , although it took a long time, it allowed the café to reopen in July 1994 in all its former splendour, inviting us to relive the fascinating Belle Époque.

An art gallery was created in the basement for small conferences or exhibitions.

Full list of Geochaching below:

https://mirror.xyz/madeinpt.eth/I5tjF3sn6ugnUw3nBnKOpOUr2DEh_g6cTN-0hivKCgc

*Released*✅ *Reviewed*✅ Approved✅

Curator Body
0x083B4bE22ACA5dC213085F59a639663fB7C6C4d6 0x7Bc11676b7b231D0Fc6E210b185bd85D615310Be 0xfa056236FBC67e1F40B41b987558F48Ab78666e0 0x1336fD9C06456Bd9d00Bc5C36319F3c06c84C759 0xD2a394b1e5690f6cb85220eA8AdD737B26F5db68