Truth

In 1901, a year after the death of Eça de Queirós (1845–1900), a group of his friends mooted the idea of creating a monument in his honour. Once it received public endorsement, the sculptor António Teixeira Lopes (1866–1942) was commissioned to create the piece. He created a naturalistic group sculpture, with the writer, depicted with great realism, supporting a semi-nude female figure in his arms. The female character here is actually an allegory of Truth, which Eça de Queirós raised to the status of protagonist in his novel A Relíquia [The Relic]. This concept is underpinned by the inscription on the plinth for the group, which quotes from that work: “Over the stark nakedness of truth, the diaphanous cloak of fantasy”.

Due to constant vandalism, Lisbon City Council had the statue removed from the Largo Barão de Quintela and replaced it with a replica in 2001.