The legend of the Lord of Matosinhos explains how a wooden statue of Jesus ended up in the town of Matosinhos, Portugal. According to the legend, the statue was carved by Nicodemus and thrown into the sea to hide it during times of Christian persecution. Centuries later, parts of the statue started washing ashore near Matosinhos. When a mute girl found an arm of the statue, she was suddenly able to speak, revealing it was from the statue of the Lord of Matosinhos. The town then built a church to house the statue, which became an important site of pilgrimage and is celebrated annually with religious festivals and processions.

1. THE LEGEND OF
THE LORD OF MATOSINHOS

2. INDEX
What is a legend?
The Legend of The Lord of
Matosinhos
Cultural Context
Matosinhos
What does it explain?
Nicodemus
Christianity
It looks different…
Annual Celebration
Sources

3. WHAT IS A LEGEND?
A legend is a semi-true story, which
has been passed on from person-to-
person and has important meaning or
symbolism for the culture in which it
originates. A legend usually includes
an element of truth, or is based on
historic facts, but with 'mythical
qualities'. Legends usually involve
heroic characters or fantastic places
and often encompass the spiritual
beliefs of the culture in which they
originate.
As an example, we have the legendary
Robin Hood with his Merry Men.
As the saying goes “Who tells a tale

4. THE LEGEND OF THE LORD OF
MATOSINHOS
According to the legend, the image of the
Lord of Matosinhos is one of the oldest in
all of Christianity. Legend has it that this
was carved by Nicodemus, who attended
the last moments of Jesus' life and is
therefore considered a true copy of your
face. The image is hollow because
Nicodemus hid in it the instruments of the
Passion, and in these times of persecution,
the sacred objects were hidden or thrown
to the sea to escape the fire. That´s what
Nicodemus did with his image, threw the
image to the Mediterranean sea, in Judea,

5. The population of Matosinhos
lifted her a temple and
designated the image for Lord
of Matosinhos, venerating it
for 50 years for its many
miracles.
But one day, a woman walking
on the beach to gather wood
for her fireplace found a piece
that couldn´t burn, no matter
how many times she tried. Her
daughter, mute from birth,
made her desperate gestures
to say anything and finally
stammered, for her mother's
amazement, the piece of wood
was the arm of the Lord of
Matosinhos. Haunted by the

6. CULTURAL CONTEXT
Where? - Although since the mid 16th
century the statue has been placed in the
current church of Matosinhos, once
constructed, it is proven documentally that
it was originally located some hundred
metres away in the old parochial church (in
the “Senhor do Padrão” monument), where
the Monastery of Bouças had existed.
Although the legend states that the statue
of the Lord of Matosinhos was received here
soon after its discovery, allegedly in the
year 124, the truth is that the oldest
documentary reference to this monastery's
existence dates from the year 944, when
the deed founding the church of S. Martin
of Aldoar was signed in the presence of the
Church of “Bom Jesus” in
Matosinhos

7. MATOSINHOS
The village is prior to the founding of the Portuguese nation, as it
already existed in the year 900, called by the name of “Matesinus”,
however it only became a city on 28 May 1984.
Matosinhos is a recent city to the Portuguese standards and therefore
influenced by the city of Porto. Incorporates fishing traditions from
the north coast, in particular from the fishing communities of “Póvoa
de Varzim” and “Vila do Conde”, the strongest in the city, but also
rural traditions from the city.

8. It´s the home-town of
the consecrated
architect Álvaro Siza
Vieira and is also
recognized by its
different gastronomy,
based on the fishing
traditions of the
population ( seafood,
fish, …)
It´s sea traditions have
now evolved into
beautiful beaches right
in the heart of the city,
which are now also very
famous because of
monuments like “She

9. WHAT DOES IT EXPLAIN?
From this legend we can
take one very important
information related to this
town, the source of its
Christianity. The fact the
image of the Lord of
Matosinhos made miracles,
explains the religiousness
that exists in the town
since this happening.
Obviously, there are many
more legends that explain

10. NICODEMUS
He was a Pharisee and a member
of the Sanhedrin mentioned in
the Gospel of John, most notable
for assisting in the burial of Jesus.
He is venerated as a Christian
saint.
Though there is no clear source of
information about Nicodemus
outside the Gospel of John,
the Jewish Encyclopedia and many
Biblical historians have theorized
that he is identical to Nicodemus
ben Gurion, mentioned in
the Talmud as a wealthy and
popular holy man reputed to have
had miraculous powers.

11. CHRISTIANITY
With about 2.1 billion followers
nowadays, Christianism is the
largest religion in the world. The
religion began through the
teachings of Jesus of Nazareth,
considered the savior of the human
race.
The followers of Jesus are called
"Christians“ and their holy book is
the Holy Bible.
Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem,
Judea (Palestine), about the year 6
BC. His moral teachings, as the love
of God and neighbor, made his life
to become an example to be

12. IT LOOKS DIFFERENT
Before ending this assignment I
think that probably you already
know a lot about this tale,
however in case you do more
investigation, don´t forget that
you might not only find
different ideas and thoughts
but also different versions of
the legend all over the web,
because the story has hundreds
of years. The reason why,
between all of those versions I
chose the one previously
presented to base my work was

13. ANNUAL CELEBRATION
AS FESTAS DO SENHOR DE
MATOSINHOS
The feasts of “Senhor de
Matosinhos” are a highlight of the
pilgrimages of the county and the
north. During the months of May
and June, they extend for almost
three weeks of religious festivities
and recreational and cultural
activities. In the temple, sermons
and masses lead to a grand
procession to “Senhor do Padrão”.
Music bands enliven the streets,
legends and traditions are recalled,
Senhor do
Padrão

14. This is how the 2014 edition
was like:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5_Jqxxz

15. SOURCES
www.cm-matosinhos.pt
www.wikipedia.com
joelcleto.no.comunidades.net/
joelcleto.no.sapo.pt/
www.youtube.com
myths.e2bn.org
Tomás Pinto, 9ºA, Conservatório de Música do
Porto