Our fifth day was short and gloomy. We spent an hour in the Carlos Machado Museum and walk around a little.
The museum features three main permanent exhibitions: Natural History, Memory of the Convent, and Sacred Art. You can explore the rich history and culture of the region through these diverse exhibits.
So, it was mostly taxidermized animals, which was fine by me, but Viola was not that happy about the spiders 🙂
My favourite room was the Plants and Reptiles Room where the highlight is a particular Azorean collection: the herbarium from the naturalist of Terceira Island, José Augusto Nogueira Sampaio, who was the liaison of the foreign naturalists that visited the Azores, such as the geologist G. Hartung and the botanist W. Trelease. You can see dozens of his handwritten books with pressed plants.
José Augusto Nogueira Sampaio (1827–1900) was a prominent Portuguese physician, surgeon, and educator born in Angra do Heroísmo, Azores. He studied at the University of Coimbra and later at the University of Leuven, Belgium. He returned to Angra do Heroísmo, where he became a surgeon at the Hospital de Santo Espírito and a professor at the local high school, eventually serving as its principal. He was an avid naturalist, contributing significantly to meteorology and botany.
He founded the first meteorological station in the Azores and was a strong advocate for Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution. Sampaio was also active in local politics and held several public health positions, combating epidemics and supporting military medical services. He was a member of several scientific societies and received various honours, including knighthood in the Order of Our Lady of Vila Viçosa and a commendation in the Military Order of Christ.
