The Village in Three Stories
Mesas do Castelinho
A walled village founded at the end of the 5th century BC, about 2 km from today's village. It was almost a Roman town, then an Umayyad fort, and only about 10% of the site has been excavated.
Explore the site →Saint Clare of Assisi
The saint who gives the village its name, founder of the Poor Clares and patron saint of television. Her feast is celebrated on 12 August, a date that preserves the old liturgical calendar.
Meet the patron saint →The Miners
The Neves-Corvo mine has marked generations in this region: work deep underground, struggles for better conditions, and a hymn that is still sung today.
Hear the story →
Stories few people know
Saint Clare of Assisi, the village's patron, has also been the official patron saint of television since 1958.
Mesas do Castelinho had a careful Roman-style street plan, but the new road passed it by: the town never came to be.
Legend has it that the Lizard-Man still guards an enchanted treasure at Castelinho, hidden even from the archaeologists.
Discover Our Village
Visit
Monuments, museums and landscapes in the village and beyond.
Plan
How to get here, where to stay and the best time to come.
Eat & Drink
Alentejo cooking, medronho spirit, honey and goat cheese.
Events
Feasts, fairs and dates for your calendar.
Traditions
Cante Alentejano singing, old crafts and local customs.
Curiosities
True facts and little-known legends.
About the Village
Santa Clara-a-Nova sits in the municipality of Almodôvar, district of Beja, at the point where the plain of Campos de Ourique meets the first foothills of the Serra do Caldeirão. This is a land of cork and holm oak montado, of medronho spirit, honey and goat cheese.
The territory records thousands of years of human presence, from prehistoric dolmens to the settlement of Mesas do Castelinho. In 2025 the parish became autonomous again, and the village keeps the genuine hospitality of inland Alentejo.
