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Secondary sourcePhotograph2013-01-20

Tomb of Vasco da Gama, Santa Engrácia

José Luiz · 2013-01-20

A photograph of a later commemorative tomb of Vasco da Gama in the Santa Engrácia pantheon in Lisbon. It is a memorial, not his original burial place.

Shows how Gama is commemorated in Lisbon, a later memorial that marks his place in Portuguese memory rather than his own life.

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White marble sarcophagus-style tomb with a black inscribed panel reading VASCO DA GAMA in gold letters, set in a stone alcove with a marble carved crest above, inside a pinkish-marbled chamber.
José Luiz, Túmulo de Vasco da Gama, photograph, 2013. Lisbon.

About this source

What it is

This is a 2013 photograph by José Luiz showing a white marble sarcophagus-style tomb with a black panel inscribed VASCO DA GAMA in gold letters. The tomb sits in a stone alcove with a carved marble crest above it, inside a pinkish-marbled chamber. It stands in the Lisbon pantheon at Santa Engrácia.

Why it matters

The photograph shows how Portugal later chose to honour Vasco da Gama, the explorer who reached India by sea in 1497 and 1498. The tomb was built long after his death in 1524, so it reflects how later generations remembered him rather than his own time. Records describe it as a memorial, not the original burial.

Look closer

  • What materials and decorations were used to make the tomb look important?
  • Why might a nation build a grand memorial for a person centuries after they died?
  • What does this monument leave out about the people Gama's voyages affected?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Vasco da Gama on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Vasco da Gama, Livro de Lisuarte de Abreu

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A black line-drawn autograph signature on white background, with a stylized flourish above and an underline stroke beneath, running across the image from left to right.Document

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Signature of Vasco da Gama

Vasco da Gama

A tall tapering white stone pillar topped with a stone cross stands on a raised circular platform by the sea. Two people sit on a low wall at left, and others sit near the right side under a partly cloudy blue sky.Artifact

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Vasco da Gama Pillar

1498 or 1499

Hand-painted portolan-style world map on parchment showing the Atlantic, Africa, and parts of Asia and the Americas, with compass roses, rhumb lines, colored flags, and Latin and Portuguese place labels.Document

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Cantino Planisphere

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