Interior, St Anthony's military chapel, Lagos.

When the Muslim Moors overran the Iberian Peninsula more than 1200 years ago, the Catholic Church became the most important socio-cultural influence in Portugal. Its legacy is a wealth of religious artifacts and buildings, ranging from individual works of art and tiny votive chapels through simple but lovingly-tended parish churches to grandiose basilicas, abbeys and cathedrals. Each has something to commend it, and some have interesting stories too. I've visited and been impressed by many of them, but to my mind three Christian artifacts in the Algarve deserve special mention. They are the Santo Antonio (St Anthony) military chapel in Lagos, the Cross of Portugal in Silves, and São Lourenço (St Lawrence) parish church near Almancil.

During the age of discovery and colonization Portuguese ships brought back gold, treasures and merchandise from around the world, while exporting slaves to the Americas, and the country became very wealthy. Some of the newly-acquired wealth found its way into the hands of military authorities. Probably the most spectacular result was the baroque chapel dedicated to their patron, Saint Anthony, which they built in Lagos in the early 1700s. Today it is a national monument, with a small but informative museum attached to it.

Paintings of the Saint's life line the walls.

It's a small building with a façade that appears quite ordinary. Once inside, though, you won't just look – you will gape in wonder and have one of two reactions. If you appreciate baroque style, you'll be awed by its detailed craftsmanship and lavish splendour; but if you are more inclined toward notions of equality and social justice you'll be appalled at its extravagance. The bottom few feet of the walls are covered in simple azulejos, the curved ceiling is painted with religious scenes, and there are some paintings of the saint's life on the walls. None of that is unusual for a Catholic country, but as for the rest – wow! Everything else is sheathed in magnificent wood carvings, completely covered in gold leaf. It must have taken years to complete, and couldn't possibly be replicated today. The massive gilded altar is topped by a statue of Saint Anthony dressed as a Major General. It is rumoured that at least some of the money used for the decor was obtained by keeping him on the army's "payroll" for years.

The first time we visited, we were told we couldn't take flash pictures, because a strong light damages gold leaf. So we went away with only our mental impressions. We went back five years later, and found that no cameras were permitted at all, but the chapel was closed for an hour every noon. I won't reveal how, but I did manage to elude the guards when they retired for lunch, and with the help of a tripod and high speed film I took the photos which accompany this article. Out of respect for the institution, only natural lighting was used. Santo Antonio remains the most impressive military chapel I have ever seen.

500-year-old Cross of Portugal.

The next marvel I want to bring to your attention is the "Cross of Portugal". It is an intricately carved white limestone cross of unknown origin which stands at the foot of the hill leading to the old Moorish castle in Silves, north-east of Lagos. It's over nine feet (3 m) tall, and on one side there is the Crucifixion, while the other side displays a touching Pietà (Descent from the Cross). Recently enclosed in a small shelter, it has braved the elements there, unguarded, for nearly 500 years. What is truly remarkable is that it holds such a place of honour among the Portuguese that it hasn't been vandalized. Can you imagine such an example of respect anywhere else?

The final marvel, the rural parish church of São Lourenço, is located about 50 miles (80 km) to the east of Lagos near the small community of Almancil. This has to be one of Europe's most moving examples of genuine Christian piety. We had heard about it, and when we first visited in 1986 we were delighted to find that the "tourist industry" had not yet discovered it. We knocked on the door of a nearby cottage, and in our pitiful Portuguese asked the little old lady who answered if we could visit the church. She let us in and, pointing to the "Poor Box" she left us there to marvel, and to take whatever photos we wanted. We were lucky, because when we returned five years later it had been "discovered": there was a new gift and souvenir shop attached to the church, the nice lady had been replaced by a ticket seller, and cameras were strictly forbidden.

High altar, Sao Lourenco.

Apart from the customary gilding on the high and side altars, every square inch of the interior – walls, curved ceiling, and dome – is covered with azulejos. These ceramic tiles, usually about four inches (10 cm) square, are one of Portugal's traditional art forms. Here, white tiles have been painted with blue biblical and religious scenes, so that the entire church is a work of art. But just visualize what that entailed...

We were told on our second visit that the tiles were fitted into place temporarily at first and the scenes were painted on them, then the tiles were taken down, glazed and fired, and finally put back up in place permanently. The work took decades to complete during the mid-1700s. What is amazing is that this was not done to please some king or cardinal, but simply because the parishioners wanted their humble church to be a fitting tribute to their patron saint. And what a tribute it is!

We've seen many older and more grandiose religious buildings and artifacts in Portugal, but none moved us like these three. Whether you find them beautiful or overdone today, they bear eloquent witness to the fervor and piety for which Portugal is renowned.

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