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Padrão dos Descobrimentos


In front of the Jerónimos Monastery and along the Tagus river is the Padrão dos Descobrimentos (Monument to the Discoveries) that symbolises the Portuguese Age of Discoveries during the 15th and 16th centuries.

It was inaugurated in 1960 during celebrations of the 500-year anniversary of the death of the Infant D. Henrique (Henry the Navigator). It evokes the maritime expansion and is designed in the shape of a caravel ship, showing Henry the Navigator at the bow as well as many relevant heroes of Portuguese history (Vasco da Gama, Pedro Álvares Cabral - discoverer of Brazil - Fernão Magalhães - who crossed the Pacific in 1520 -, the writer Camões and many others). It is visited by millions of people each year.