2-370-777 - Samuel Magal/Sites & Photos/Heritage Images

Cloister and view of the courtyard, Monastery of Alcobaca, Alcobaca, Portugal, 2009. The Monastery of Santa Maria de Alcobaca was founded in 1153 by Afonso Henriques (Afonso I of Portugal). It was one of the most powerful abbeys of the Cistercian order. The beautiful Gothic Cloisters of Silence were built during the reign of King Dinis (Denis) I in the late 13th century. The builders were Portuguese architects Domingo Domingues and Master Diogo. The chapter house, connected to the cloister by a Romanesque-style portal, is filled with Baroque statues created by the monks. The remnants of the monastery library, including hundreds of medieval manuscripts, are now kept in the National Library in Lisbon. Alcobaca Monastery was designated a World Heritage Site in 1989.