Stock Exchange Palace (Palácio da Bolsa)

In front of you is the building with which Porto's merchant class announced who was in charge in the 19th century: no longer the bishop or the king, but trade.

1From convent to palace

The cloister of the São Francisco convent once stood here. During the Siege of Porto (1832-1833), the civil war between liberals and absolutists, a fire destroyed the convent buildings. Soon afterwards the religious orders were abolished and the ruins went to the Associação Comercial do Porto, the city's commercial association, which needed a home: for years merchants had been closing deals in the open air on Rua dos Ingleses.

Work began in October 1842 and dragged on for decades, under several architects, among them Joaquim da Costa Lima and, near the end, José Marques da Silva.

2A palace built to impress

Inside, the palace is famous for its Arabian Room, covered in gilded Moorish-style stucco, where the city still honours visiting heads of state. In the central courtyard, the Hall of Nations, the coats of arms of Portugal's trading partners remind you where the money came from.

The building is still the seat of the Associação Comercial do Porto: the palace continues to serve the people who built it.

3What to look for

• The statue of Henry the Navigator in the garden opposite, unveiled in 1900.
• The contrast between the palace's neoclassical front and the Gothic façade of São Francisco next door.
• The staircase and pediment, a classicism designed to lend dignity to commerce.