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Barcelos (Portugal)
Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Terço (Barcelos, Pt)
Rúa D. António Barroso (Barcelos, Portugal)
Associação Comercial e Industrial (Barcelos, Pt)The Legend of The Cock of Barcelos
The legend of the rooster/Cock (galo in portuguese) from Barcelos is very old that there are many variations. I want to let you know that I have taken this excerpt from a web; it’ll explain you the legend much better than my own writing:
“A Spaniard from Galicia who was passing through town on a pilgrimage was accused of committing a serious crime: possibly theft, perhaps murder. Protesting his innocence in the face of execution, he demanded to see the magistrate who had pronounced his sentence. His request granted, the Galician was taken to the house of the magistrate, who was entertaining guests. Pointing to a roast chicken (a staple on any Portuguese banquet table), he shouted, “As sure as I am innocent that cock will crow if I am hanged!”
Here the story varies. Some versions say the cock crowed immediately and the man was released. Other versions say guests derided the accused while the party continued and the man was sent to the gallows, but the judge ordered that the cock not be touched. By the time the man was to be hanged, evening had fallen and the judge was in his house. Suddenly, to everyone’s amazement, the roasted rooster transformed and began to crow. The Galician was saved just in time, and released.
Today, the Portuguese and Spanish get along a little better, but the Galo de Barcelos has become one of the most instantly recognized cultural symbols of the Portuguese diaspora. No Portuguese home is without at least one galo somewhere: embroidered on a table cloth, tattooed on a kid’s back, painted on something ceramic”.
