“In the construction of volumes and footbridges, solid wood cut from the Sintra Mountains will be used.”

The Castle of the Moors, located in Sintra, was built between the 8th and 9th centuries and dates back to the period of Islamic rule and the conquests of Afonso I. Situated atop the mountain range, it enjoys an excellent view of Sintra and is today an important tourist attraction.

In order to provide the space with some equipment to support visitors, the company Parques de Sintra – Monte da Lua decided to build four buildings of reduced volumetry, interconnected by footbridges, and consisting of timber portico structures. The architectural project was the responsibility of the architecture office Ubiquidade – arquitectura e multimédia, Lda.

NCREP was responsible for preparing the design of the timber structures, which sought to fulfil the preconditions specified by the client involving the use of traditional materials and techniques, in order to ensure compliance with the principles dictated by the International Letters and Recommendations, namely the principles of Reversibility and Compatibility, since the intervention was to be carried out inside the Castle of the Moors. To that end, timber was used, some of which was cut from the Sintra Mountains, connected through metallic elements. In cases where the mountain timber did not have the desired characteristics, glued laminated timber was used. Timber and steel were also used in the brace elements that were introduced with the aim of improving the behaviour of the buildings against seismic actions.