The last dwelling of the dead: the places of burial in the Braga of the XVIII century

Abstract

This article wants to analyse and study the major places of burial chosen by the inhabitants of Braga in the XVIII century. It comes from a more large doctoral investigation about the thematic of the experience of death and the search for the soul salvation among the inhabitants of Braga during this century. The present text makes an analysis not only in a general dimension but also in a more detailed level. The gathered data clearly point towards a major choice for the churches of the parishes and confraternities located in the city. We also seek to show to the reader that in the temples there were different places ob burial, in conformity to the social profile of each person. Beyond this points, the present article wants to show the various motivations on the basis of the choices made by the inhabitants of Braga. This work was possible by the study of 250 local testaments, and the data from the archives of some confraternities of the city.