Old Goa - The Paintings & Gilt Woodwork

PORTRAITS OF VICE-ROYS
If we visit the Archaeological Museum housed in the Convent of St. Francis of Assisi in Old Goa, we see a gallery of 96 portraits of the Vice-Roy's and Governors which were previously in Panjim. Formerly, they adorned the hall of the Vice-Roy's Palace in Old Goa.

This series was started at the request of the Vice-Roy 0. João de Castro (1546-48) and the portraits of the previous twelve Vice-Roy's were not painted from the natural. The local artists played an important role; so much so that Luis de Frois, in his letter dated 14.11.1559, makes mention of a famous Goan artist who was favoured by the Governors, because he was an expert in making portraits.

When, in 1951, an experts' team from Portugal visited Old Goa under Prof. Mario Tavares Chico, they found that "iconographically these portraits were sometimes not trustworthy in present condition as many were badly over painted." Long ago, in 1834, J. Wilson spoke of retouching them; also L. Cunha Gonsalves and specially Teixeira de Aragao in 1880. In 1894, Gomes da Costa, retouched them, substituting the legends and modifying the dressing style. At this time, he prepared an album of all those portraits in water colours. There is also a MS in the British Museum (Sloane MS 197) which has 44 coloured portraits of Vice-Roys and Governors down to 1635, based on those in the gallery of the Viceregal palace, at Old Goa.

In 1953, the Portuguese Government authorized that some paintings from Old Goa should be taken to Portugal for cleaning. The following portraits were among other paintings:

1. D. Francisco de Almeida
2. Afonso de Albuquerque
3. Vasco da Gama
4. D. João de Castro
5. Diogo Lopes de Sequeira
6. Miguel de Noronha (Count of Linhares)

Before the cleaning process they were radiographed. The first X rays obtained at the Instituto de Restauro in Lisbon revealed completely different paintings subjacent to the actual ones; besides, there were fundamental changes in the dressing style and position of legends. The X-rays revealed that there was another subjacent head looking to the left on the portrait of Vasco da Gama; the same about the portrait of Afonso de Albuquerque, but here the subjacent head looked towards the right side. There were many other changes. Among all the portraits subjected to X--rays, D. Joao de Castro's portrait revealed an oriental influence, namely the Mogul style.

As Prof. Carlos de Azavedo writes "we have yet to prove that the portraits now revealed by the X-rays are the original ones painted in the XVIth century. Unfortunately they do not look like paintings of great merit. However, partial cleaning of certain areas has brought to light a third layer of paint and other surprises might still be awaiting the art historian.