João de Castilho

João de Castilho (1470–1552), also known as Juan de Castillo, was a Castilian and a notable Iberian architect born in Castillo Siete Villas, actually Arnuero (Cantabria). He is recognizably one of the premier architects in Portuguese history (where he developed most of his work), responsible for several buildings classified as world heritage by UNESCO.

Career

He began working on the Cathedral in Bruges, before advancing to the Cathedral of Seville in his early career. From Seville he was summoned by the Archbishop of Braga, D. Diego de Sousa, in 1509, to work on the chapel of the Sé Cathedral

Following this period, he worked on the parochial Church of São João Baptista in Vila do Conde, where he lived for a while (a city was thriving at the time economically due to imports-exports from its port.

From Vila do Conde, João de Castilho began on working in the Convent of Christ in Tomar. There he executed the celebrated gate and portico to the Church, responding to the beautiful Manueline window produced by Diogo de Arruda. His efforts were rewarded, when he was given the task of managing the public works at the Convent, which he maintained until his death.

In 1517, he succeeded Diogo Boitaca as director of the public works at the Monastery of the Jeronimos, where he designed the extraordinary southern portico (along with Gil Vicente, author of the Custódia of Belém).

He worked in five World Heritage Sites:

• Convent of Christ (Tomar)
• Jerónimos Monastery
• El Jadida
• Batalha Monastery
• Alcobaça Monastery.