National Palace of Queluz celebrates Christmas with the Nativity Scene of Carlota Joaquina

In the time of Queen Carlota Joaquina, who lived at the Palace of Queluz for much of her life, the nativity scene was the centrepiece of Christmas celebrations in Portugal, and the Royal Family faithfully observed this tradition. To evoke this custom, the National Palace of Queluz is highlighting the nativity scene that, according to tradition, belonged to the queen, displaying it in the Hunting Room, at the start of the visitor route, until 6 January, Epiphany.

This eighteenth-century nativity scene belongs to a period in which such compositions, with moulded and painted terracotta figures, reached great splendour and monumentality. Displayed during Christmas in churches, convents and the homes of well-to-do families, they celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ while incorporating depictions of everyday activities, domestic tasks and even burlesque scenes such as tavern episodes. Artistic quality was revealed in the attention to detail and the mastery of realistic representation.

The nativity scene said to have belonged to Carlota Joaquina is one of the richest in terms of the number of figures and groups represented, which visitors can discover progressively. The composition is staged on several levels, creating multiple narrative planes, with the Holy Family in the foreground. Biblical episodes, such as the Annunciation to the Shepherds or the journey of the Magi, coexist with popular motifs or bambochades — such as a fandango and a scene with drunkards — as well as everyday scenes featuring washerwomen, millers and others.

Displayed in a glazed wooden structure produced in the mid-nineteenth century, this nativity scene is also one of the best preserved. During the Christmas season, it will welcome visitors to the National Palace of Queluz, who will be able to view it in the Hunting Room, a space that once belonged to the queen’s private apartments.