A new museum housing the result of around 50 years of private collecting has opened in Moncarapacho, Olhão, adding what local officials hope will become another cultural attraction for the eastern Algarve.
The Casa do Colecionador (Collector’s House) was inaugurated on Monday, October 19, in a restored 18th-century former church which once belonged to the Third Order of Saint Francis.
Owned by the Fundação Calçada Correia, the museum brings together collections ranging from sacred art and stone sculpture to ivory paintings and an unusual collection of more than 260 walking sticks.
The collection belongs to João Luís Calçada Correia, who chose his hometown of Moncarapacho as the location for the project.
“I chose Moncarapacho for this investment because I believe it is worth investing in the places we belong to, contributing to their development and creating conditions for culture to also become a factor in local development,” he said at the inauguration.
“My hometown deserves a quality cultural venue, capable of attracting visitors, awakening the interest of younger people and enriching the lives of those who live here.”
Historic building given new life
The museum occupies a building with its own considerable history.
The former church underwent an award-winning rehabilitation project designed to preserve the spirituality and character of the original space while introducing a contemporary museum setting.
Olhão Mayor Ricardo Veia Calé said the opening represented another important step in efforts to strengthen Moncarapacho’s cultural identity.
“Today is an important day because we know we have taken another significant step towards ensuring that this cultural landmark remains rooted in the town,” he said.
Calé said the ambition to make Moncarapacho a more culturally active town was being pursued through public, social, associative and private investment, with Casa do Colecionador providing an example of the latter.
“In a town the size of Moncarapacho, we are showing that it is possible to do much more,” he said, thanking Calçada Correia for investing in the place where he was born.
Minister praises private collection turned public
The inauguration was also attended by Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Margarida Balseiro Lopes, who praised the decision to transform a private collection into a cultural space open to the community.
She described the project as an example of turning a personal initiative into “a contribution to collective life”.
“A cultural space never exists in isolation from the place where it is located,” she said. “It becomes part of its life, part of the reasons why someone visits it and part of the opportunities it offers those who live there.”
“With this museum, Moncarapacho gains another place to discover, show and share – a place which adds to the cultural offer of Olhão municipality and invites people to discover a territory that has much more to offer beyond the Algarve’s best-known destinations.”
Calé also argued that culture would become increasingly important in a rapidly changing world.
“In a world in constant change, in which technology and artificial intelligence are replacing human beings, it will be culture that makes the difference in the future,” he said.
“Olhão gained enormously today with the opening of this Casa do Colecionador.”
The ceremony was attended by local officials and figures from the regional cultural scene, including award-winning Algarve writer Lídia Jorge.
Opening times and tickets
Casa do Colecionador is open Tuesday to Saturday, from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm.
Tickets cost between €2.50 and €5.