The Câmara de Matosinhos classified the building as a Monument of Municipal Interest
The Quinta de Santiago, in Leça da Palmeira, was classified as a Monument of Municipal Interest, gaining, under the terms of the Law on Cultural Heritage, a legal status that ensures its protection and enhancement.
The Matosinhos City Hall, it should be remembered, approved, on the 31st of August of this year, the classification of Casa de Santiago. The announcement of the deliberation was published in Diário da República, on the 21st of October.
The Casa de Santiago represents a cultural value of great significance for the municipality of Matosinhos.
Formerly called Casa de Vila Franca, it is an example of the residence of a family of the high bourgeoisie, from the end of the 19th century, with roots in the small rural nobility of Minho.
It was built by João Santiago de Carvalho e Sousa for his residence in the last decade of the 19th century. The author of the architectural project was Nicola Bigaglia, a Venetian architect settled in Portugal since the 1880s. The property features an eclectic, revivalist architectural style, in keeping with the taste of the period, integrating neo-Medieval elements, in a generic neo-Renaissance tone that would characterise the later works of this architect.
The house was acquired by the Matosinhos City Hall in 1968. Its recovery and adaptation to become a museum was directed by the architect Fernando Távora. On April 2, 1996, it opened its doors as the Quinta de Santiago Museum, dedicated to the public exhibition of the municipality's art collection.