Marabouts of Alvor
Marabouts of Alvor
It is known that the Arabs extended their stay in the South of Portugal.
Alvor wasn´t an exception, having been a center of some importance during the Muslim occupation.
An unmistakable evidence of the Moorish presence in this zone is represented by the shapeless ruins of a castle that once defended the river and the village, and by the three existing "morabitos" (cubical constructions with a spherical dome).
The reconstruction ordered bu king Dinis didn´t save the castle, but the marabouts have been preserved, valued and transformed into chapels.
The St John marabout, the bigger of the three, is situated at the local graveyard; the second is St Peter´s and the third, attached to the church, is used as a vestry.