The painted ceiling of the Room of the Magpies or Sala das Pegas in the Palácio Nacional, the former Portuguese royal summer palace at Sintra, features 136 painted magpies - perhaps symbolising 136 ladies of the Portuguese court chattering and gossiping about King John I kissing a lady-in-waiting. Roses held in their claws may symbolise his marriage to England’s Philippa of Lancaster.
Sintra, Lisbon region, Portugal: according to legend, the 136 magpies painted in the 1400s on the wooden ceiling of the Sala das Pegas (Room of the Magpies) in the Palácio Nacional de Sintra held deep symbolic significance for both Dom João I (King John I) and his Queen consort Philippa, a member of the English royal House of Lancaster. Two of the symbols are easy to decipher. The phrase ‘Por Bem’ (For Good), on pennants or scrolls held in the birds’ beaks, was King John’s personal motto. Most authorities believe that roses held in the birds’ feet reference the Lancastrian red rose, although by now - perhaps due to colour fading over time - most of the blooms look more like the white roses of Lancaster’s bitter rival, the House of York. No-one knows for certain why King John chose magpies to decorate the ceiling, probably the oldest painted ceiling in the palace. However, according to tradition, the birds - famed for their noisy chattering - may relate to an incident in which the court was convulsed with female gossip about the king allegedly being found - possibly by Queen Philippa herself - kissing one of her ladies-in-waiting. The queen’s response to her husband’s infidelity is unfortunately lost in the mists of time, but to rebuke the court ladies and to quell their idle gossip and tittle-tattle, John was said to have decorated the room with the same number of magpies as there were women at court. Philippa of Lancaster (1360-1415), elder sister of England’s King Henry IV, married King John (1357-1433) in 1387. In the years after her death, he rebuilt and enlarged parts of the royal retreat at Sintra, including the Sala das Pegas.
Size: 4912px × 7360px
Location: Palácio Nacional de Sintra, Sintra, Lisbon region, Portugal.
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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