Museo do Círio Belém

The many idiosyncrasies of Belém’s famous religious festival, the Círio de Nazaré, are explained in this handsome museum, from the discovery of a tiny statue of Mary in a riverbank in 1700, to the story behind the 400m, 450kg rope that's now such an integral part of the procession, the faithful masses jostling for a chance to touch or pull it. Explanations in Portuguese only.