The Igreja de São Roque: Chapel of St. John the Baptist
"This chapel is considered one of the great attractions of the São Roque church due to how clearly it represents the influence of European art on Portugal in the 18th century. It combines aspects of the rocaille style into a structure notable for its austere neo-classical lines. It was ordered from Italy in 1740 by king João V, and had its official Lisbon inauguration in 1750. Italian architects Luigi Vanvitelli and Nicola Salvi oversaw a project which involved over 130 craftsman.
Before being dispatched to Lisbon, it was blessed by Pope Benedict XIV, in the Church of Saint Anthony the Portuguese. Three ships were used in its transport. The inlays and precious stones covering the entire chapel, on the specific request of the Portuguese court, are impressive. Among others, close attention reveals lapis lazuli, agate, alabaster, Carrara marble, amethyst, purple porphyry, French white black, ancient-green and ancient fault marble and stone types, diaspore and jade."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dD3wllOZEA
Following its heyday as a world power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence in 1822 of Brazil a... ... read more 
