With little more than 50 a thousand inhabitants, Évora fascinates for the history and the balance of the urban landscape. Its historical center, classified for UNESCO since 1986 as “Heritage of the Humanity”, is considered a model of preservation of the vestiges of the past, although in it to inhabit more than 18 thousand people. Until it has about 50 years, was the essential of the city and were few the existing buildings and squares in the exterior spaces. Vast fields of wheat, surrounded then old burgo.

Today, the city exceeded the walls and is extended for about 40 surrounding quarters. It deserves particular has internationally detached of the Malagueira, conceived for Siza the Vieira and awardee. No forget, however, other interventions: the Commercial Center Eborim (Fernando Bagulho), the store and habitations of Santa Catarina (Silva Graça) and the intelligent renewal of the Theater Garcia de Resende (Miguel Lima).

To who Évora visit one sends regards that, before seeing the walls (it surrounds new dated of séc. XIV), it admires the Aqueduct of the Water of Silver, whose construction retraces the 1574 and brought water of the Favour of the Divor for the Square of the Giraldo, now practically revenged in virtue of the modification and the modernization of the accesses to the city.

Close to the place where its monumental one would arcaria emerges, it is the Convent of the Cartuxa, in which five currently scarce monges persists in keeping lighted the spirit of the order, living in rupture with the world. Near is placed the Convent of Blessed S. of Castris, the oldest monastic foundation of the South of the country. It started for being ermida in 1169 and was changedded into conventual church in 1328. Still out of the walls, in the vast Rossio, rises it Ermida de S. Brás, constructed about 1490 substituting one would lodge that it served of shelter to the afectados ones for I occasion it of plague.

To enter in the historical center, or the “city” as it they call the "eborenses", is preferable to leave the automobile in one of the many peripheral parks next to the old defenses of urbe. In the historical center, the transit is conditional and the majority of the parking places cannot for more than be used one hour. Passed the old doors (of Aviz it only keeps traces it original), the city appears with all the characteristics of the old medieval burgos. Pressed streets and crosspieces, finished for times in shady alleys, brings all to imagination one rich passed.

Windows, porches and loaded columns of echoes of other times dance in the front of the eyes to each moment. Not only in the beautiful historical houses but also in that long ago they were of the population and they constitute substantial part of this winding confusion of arteries, releived of congestionn of when in when for the appearance of a square or a plaza (spectacular of the Salema), where normally sources or chafarizes meet, in a clear demonstration of that the water always was a crucial problem for the populations of the region.

In Évora all the ways lead for the Square of the Giraldo, old called Great Square. Considered the room of visits of urbe, it very conserves a proper trace, that is assured to it by the magnificent medieval arcs in return round and ogivais arcs that if draw out for there of its limits. The artistic crowned source (1571) and the Church of Santo Antão (1557), ordered to execute for Cardinal-Infante D. Henrique, who occupied for this height the chair metropolitan of Évora, complete the scene of that were and continue to be the great commercial space of the city.

The intervention of diverse local architects in the small store of the zone knew to always respect the difficult description-monumental contexts. From there they leave, for north, the streets of the Currency and of Merchants (old It would mistreat) e, for South, the Street Would stamp (main street of artisan commerce and today with the name of 5 of October). For this if it arrives at the Plaza of the Sé, where if it points out the magnificent cathedral, the most finished exemplary Portuguese of the architecture Roman-Ghotic.

The Sé lodges the Museum of Sacra Art, made use in three rooms. In the first one, in the ghotic windows insert in romanic arcs, if shows the ghotic images that complete the ones that if can appreciate of the Door of the Apóstolos and in claustro. In the second, long one and illuminated for openings Roman-ghotics, they are distinguished a magnificent colection of red paraments and white silk embroidered the gold and ghotic sculptures in wood. The third guard a precious set of religious goldsmithery in silver and  inserted golden silver with precious rocks.

Next to the Sé, in the Plaza of the Conde de Vila Flor, in the building of the old Episcopal Pace it is the Regional Museum, with interesting colection of painting. It is distinguished a nucleus of four pictures of Josefa de Óbidos, one of which the famous “Místico Lamb”. To relate a set of Portuguese painting of séc. XVI, of the Cut of D. Manuel: a trípico of Gregorio Lopes Diogo de Contreira, Francisco Henriques and Frei Carlos, who had workshop in Évora. Still a colection of pictures of the Portuguese Cut of séc. XVII (D. João IV, D. Catarina de Bragança and D. Afonso VI), great retábulo of the Sé de Évora at the beginning of séc. XVI and a políptico of the life of the Virgin in 13 pictures. Exist also a good colection of goldsmithery and would joallery proceeding from the estate of some extinct convents e, in the claustros, an archaeological colection, of architectural sculpture and elements, whose museum arrangement was made by Tavares Chicó.

In the immediacy of the Sé and redor of the Roman Temple (séc. III), former-libris of the city and on building to the cult of the emperors, the Episcopal Pace Granary Fit of the boys of the Sé had been built in a first phase (current Regional Museum) the College and, constituting modernly these two last property, the Public Library of the city. They are of a more delayed phase the church and the convent of the Lóios (current inn), the current residence of the inquisidor-mor (Pastorais Services of the Archdiocese) and the Palace of the Inquisition, taken to condes of the Vidigueira and later errand to remodel. Not very far, the inquisidor-mor made to install the University of the Espírito Santo, the one that joined a church that received the same name. Spread for all the city it was a series of temples (churches of the Mercy, S. Mamede, S. Tiago, S. Salvador, S. Vicente and Senhor da Pobreza), of convents (of Santa Mónica, Novo and Santa Clara) and of colleges (S. Manços and S. Paulo). Everything this culminates in the church and convent of Nossa Senhora da Graça, only unit in the Iberian Peninsula, of imponent façade in Italian baroque style. In many of these buildings the ornamental arts are of inestimable value, nominated in the chapters of the mural painting, the tiling and the golden cut that composes the altars.