Muxarabis, Rótulas, Gelosias/ o caso de Alfama e Moraria

The “muxarabis”, “rótulas” and “gelosias” are wooden structures on the facades that combine their aesthetics with functionality, providing the control of lighting and ventilation of an interior compartment, which relates to the expression of the architecture.

Although they are considered structures of an Arab culture, with the expansion of Islam and consequently the dominion of the Muslim in Iberian Peninsula, “muxarabis”, “rótulas” and “gelosias” spread throughout portuguese territory, namely in Alfama and Mouraria. These neighborhoods are the oldest areas of the city of Lisbon, with an urban network similar to the cities of North Africa, formed by streets, alleys and dead ends, with opposing facades very close and without privacy.

It is proposed an approach that puts in confrontation the photographs of the Lisbon Municipal Archives, which present the wooden structures in Alfama and Mouraria with current photographs, resgisted out by the author under the same point of view. The analysis is based on representations of ephemeral architecture in video documentaries and the dissemination of this particular characteristic of the neighborhoods in postcards, magazines and engravings.

The “muxarabis”, “rótulas” and “gelosias” seem, in the first instance, to be historical structures; however, through their study, it was verified that they appeared in the Estado Novo period, becoming a visual vice, an image that is formed by an issue of interest. On the other hand, these neighborhoods nowadays show big tourist promotion. This conjuncture, provided a systematic application of the elements in a disregarded way, through structures that maintain the former, designed in PVC, and with modern mechanisms.