Description
Casa da Gaviarra in Valenca is located within the walls, on the front line of the River Minho, its meadow and with its eyes set on the Cathedral of Tui in neighboring Spain.
Next to the house is the oldest gate in the walls of Valenca, the Porta da Gaviarra, through which hikers end the Portuguese Way of Santiago.
It was built in the 19th century by Baron da Urgeira as the home of his eldest daughter.
It is a large house in the style of the neoclassical period. Built in stone masonry, with richly crafted bronze railings on the balconies. The corners, plinths, cornices and frames of the openings are made of finely dressed granite.
With very elegant lines, it has a privileged location, beauty and elegance.
In the second half of the 20th century. XX, an important remodeling work was carried out: structure of pillars, beams and slabs including the roof structure.
It has 7 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, charming and exquisite dining room and living room, garage, library, kitchen and romantic gardens.
Most of the rooms are very recently covered with high quality and refined wallpaper (Versace, Laura Ashley, Sanderson, and the famous Thibaut). In the master bedroom the wallpaper represents Aesop's fables (the hare and the tortoise, the stork and the fox). The wallpaper covering the walls and ceiling of the second floor room is a French-made toyle de Jouy and represents a 19th century party. XVIII, in Chantilly. The rooms have wooden floors.
The living room has a fireplace topped by a large Manueline stone with a carved angel's head and on the sides plant motifs adorn the angel's face. This stone was removed from the ground floor (next to the garage) where it served as a door lintel.
The fireplace in the dining room is made of marble, was purchased in France and is lined with three cast iron plates representing putis and plant motifs.
The terrace has a handcrafted hydraulic mosaic floor.
It has two gardens, a smaller one next to the terrace with several Japanese trees, a rhododendron and two magnolias.
The second garden has a high wall along the Gaviarra patrol path, which is part of the old wall of this stronghold and is adorned with a large number of Japanese trees, some of which are quite rare. There is also a rare specimen of a 'Bela Portuguesa' rose bush created by a French botanist in the 19th century. XIX who lived in Lisbon, where he directed the Botanical Garden.
Buying this house means buying history, culture and beauty. These properties are heritage sites within the Heritage Site that is Praca Forte de Valenca, listed as a National Monument since 1910 and today a candidate for World Heritage by UNESCO.
Valenca do Minho, in addition to its natural beauty and cultural heritage, is in a strategic urban geographic location. Because it is located in the center of seven cities with more than 100 thousand inhabitants, Valenca is considered, by urban planning experts from Portugal and Spain, one of the 'Potential Cities' in the northwest of the Peninsula.
With four international airports nearby and served by motorways to all cities, Valenca is also an important station on the Porto-Vigo railway line, as well as a stopover point for the planned high-speed line that runs between Porto and Vigo in just 1 hour.
List of cities with more than 100 thousand inhabitants in the center of which Valenca is located:
- Vigo, whose metropolitan area has 480 thousand inhabitants, has an international airport and the largest Atlantic port in Spain, is 35 km from Valenca.
- Pontevedra, whose metropolitan region has 168 thousand inhabitants, is 55 km from Valenca.
- Braga, which is the third largest city in Portugal with around 200 thousand inhabitants (city only), is 70 km from Valenca.
- Ourense, with 105 thousand inhabitants (city only), is 98 km from Valenca.
- Santiago de Compostela, famous for its cathedral and of enormous tourist importance, has an international airport and almost 200 thousand inhabitants in its metropolitan region; It is 115 km from Valenca.
Energy Rating: D
