The IDENTI(CITY) program aims to highlight and reflect on the role of Cultural Heritage as a tangible and intangible testament to the history and identity of communities.
This initiative includes visits, concerts, exhibitions, performances, and conversations, creating opportunities for dialogue and cultural appreciation.
In 2025, Braga will be the Portuguese Capital of Culture, and in this context, the Identi(city) program also coordinates with the European Heritage Days, this year dedicated to the theme “Architectural Heritage: Windows to the Past, Doors to the Future.”
The program invites the discovery of traditions, customs, and practices, promoting the sharing of experiences and reflection on the relationship between past, present, and future.

 

Researchers from Lab2PT/IN2PAST are participating in this event with various activities:

Guided Tour: Streets that Speak. Poor People and Institutions of Braga (16th-18th Centuries) | Luis Gonçalves Ferreira
September 27 | 10 am | Largo D. João Peculiar
During the Modern Age, individuals and institutions in the city of Braga provided material and spiritual assistance to the poor, allocating funds for alms and bequests. Ordinary people and workers sought charity for various reasons, such as hunger, illness, or the death of relatives. On which streets did these individuals live? What institutions supported them? How was formal and informal assistance articulated? What principles mediated the relationship between rich and poor? This tour aims to reclaim the invisible (poverty) through the visible (material heritage) in the common space (the streets).
Route: Largo D. João Peculiar; Cloister of the Cathedral; Largo de São Paulo; Largo Carlos Amarante; Church of São Vicente.
Integrated into the ITINERARIUM program – Discovering Braga through Heritage (História Social a Norte)

 

Guided Tour: Historical Paths: Braga Through the Centuries | Fernanda Magalhães; Raquel Martins; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro
September 28 | 3 pm| D. Diogo de Sousa Archaeology Museum
This visit offers a unique journey through the different layers of Braga’s history, revealing aspects of the continuity of its heritage. From the ancient legacy of prehistoric Braga to the founding of Bracara Augusta, we then explore medieval Braga before delving into the vitality of modern and contemporary Braga. This itinerary allows us to understand how, over the centuries, Braga reinvented itself and preserved its identity.
Route: D. Diogo de Sousa Archaeology Museum; Roman Baths of Alto da Cividade; Largo de Santiago; Rossio da Sé; Municipal Square; Largo do Paço.

 

Meeting: From Legacy to Participation: Cultural Mediation and Heritage | Alexandra Esteves (moderator of the panel “Cultural Heritage: Mediation, Transmission, and Recreation”)
September 29 | 9 am | Braga Forum
This meeting provides a privileged opportunity to reflect on the role of cultural mediation as a bridge between communities, institutions, and cultural heritage. The aim is to create a space for interdisciplinary dialogue and sharing of best practices, bringing together researchers, professionals, and cultural mediators to address the challenges of safeguarding, valuing, and renewing heritage, understood not only as a legacy of the past, but also as a living and participatory resource for building more inclusive and sustainable futures.

 

All events are free, with prior registration.

 

Collaboration: Archdiocese of Braga; Bracara Augusta Foundation; Tibães Monastery; Biscainhos Museum; Dr. Gonçalo Sampaio Costume Museum; Pius XII Museum; Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Braga; University of Minho

 

More information: HERE