The traditional cork nativity scene of Cortelha will be inaugurated tomorrow, Saturday, at 17 pm, and can be seen until the 00th of January, in Largo da Associação, in this mountain village in the municipality of Loulé.
As always, the nativity scene is the result of «a lot of work by the local population», who used materials from the area to create it, namely «cork, cane, moss and riverside stones», according to the Associação dos Amigos da Cortelha.
To create this «authentic work of art», it took «long weeks of picking moss, looking for the best cork straws and carrying stones from the stream to build the scene of the birth of Jesus».
Cork, which is the main source of income for the inhabitants of the village, «has something much more important in this nativity scene than a simple raw material: it transports the soul of the people of Cortelha».
The nativity scene in this village in the parish of Salir «is intended to reflect the global context of the meaning of Christmas, from the path taken by the Magi Kings, to the hut where the birth of Jesus is traditionally attributed, passing through its setting in the rural environment. It will thus be possible to appreciate several life-size figures, namely the wise men on their camels, as well as a donkey and a cow».
The Cortelha Crib is an initiative of the Association of Friends of Cortelha and the local population and can be visited at any time.
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