THE LEGEND OF THE
GOLDEN HEARTS
Inspiration
Viana do Castelo is a fascinating city situated in the north of Portugal, near the mouth of the river Lima.
It was established in the 13th century and much of what happens in this story is inspired on the strength of its people, legends and traditions.
'I saw Ana of the Castle'
Legend has it that the origins of its name can be traced back to a love story about a beautiful young maiden named Ana who lived in a castle and a young man who fell in love with her. Each time he spied her up in her window, he declared:
'Vi a Ana do castelo!'
('I saw Ana of the Castle')
And that was how people began calling the place
‘Viana do Castelo’.
Portuguese Filigree
The region’s filigree jewelry is one of the reasons Viana de Castelo is known internationally today.
Inspired by a technic brought by the Arabs, the region’s filigree has a very characteristic distinct imagery and is most widely known for its beautiful hearts, intricately worked in gold, known as
“Viana Hearts”.
The Pilgrimage of Our Lady of the Agony is still today one of the largest and most important Portuguese religious festivals, The main highlight of the Festival is "O Desfile da Mordomia", a parade in which the women of the region display all the different traditional costumes of Viana, bedecked in their gold pieces, including the Viana Hearts, as a symbol of family wealth.
Viana do Castelo is therefore much more than just the town in which the romance between Ana and Thomas is set. It is a character with its own life, and that provides the essence of this love story through the strength, generosity, art and tradition of its people. A story that begins and lasts… forever.
