Designation
University Press
Current occupation
University Press
Ownership
University of Coimbra
Art-historical characterisation
Founded during the Pombaline Reform in 1772, the University Press incorporated the former assets of the Press of the Royal College of Arts and the former Liturgical Academy of Coimbra. That same year, when the Marquis of Pombal ordered the transfer of the cathedral's functions to the Jesuit church, the opportunity arose to install a new press, larger than its predecessors, in the cloister of the old cathedral. As a complement to these facilities, two properties in the Rua da Ilha were also acquired, attached to the cloister, being the buildings of the new press were almost completed in 1773.
The main façade is quite sober, with a portal topped by a triangular pediment, rhythmic with numerous openings: 10 windows on the ground floor, 11 on the second floor and 12 oval windows on the top floor. The top of the building is crowned by urns, the ones at the ends being larger.
The building's interiors were altered according to the needs and functions of the services that operated there over the years, but there was still a staircase that gave access to the upper floor of the cloister, where the Press's workshops were located.
The building maintained its original function until 1934, a function that was reactivated again in 1999, until the present day.
