Cidade Velha, Cabo Verde, July 15, 2026 (Lusa) - Archaeologists are excavating a hillside in Cidade Velha, Cabo Verde’s first capital, and bringing to light the ruins of one of the pioneering hospitals in the Atlantic, dating back some 500 years.
“It really is one of the first,” André Teixeira, an archaeologist at Universidade Nova de Lisboa, has acknowledged. He is collaborating with Cabo Verde's Institute of Cultural Heritage (IPC).
The site “appears in records from the late 15th century, that is, between 30 and 40 years after the discovery of Cabo Verde” in 1460.
“From the very start of overseas expansion, it was clear that healthcare facilities were needed. This is one of those early examples. Cabo Verde was, in many respects, a testing ground” for the Portuguese routes of the time, he notes.
Work has been underway for a year and a half, and the rediscovery has led the authorities to redesign the regeneration project for that part of the city, which is classified as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).
As part of a project supported by the World Bank, the ruins of the Misericórdia complex are set to house the first museum centre in Cidade Velha, 10 kilometres from the capital, Praia, with many stories to tell.
For example, André Teixeira shows Lusa the remains of a pipe believed to have been used in the old hospital, found underground alongside pieces of porcelain.
“Smoking to relieve pain is not unheard of in such hospital settings,” he explained.
One of the team members, working meticulously, continues to chip away at the ground and strikes something: slowly and with the help of a brush, another piece of pottery emerges from the earth – certainly locally made, André points out.
It shows signs of having been fired, and chicken bones have been unearthed right next to it, in what may have been a kitchen or refectory on the ground floor of the old hospital.
The team is “clearing away the mound, and the structures are gradually emerging”, he added.
The building, nestled into a rocky slope that the centuries have gradually covered with earth, is thought to have had a first floor with wards (the floor level is visible) and is believed to have been abandoned in the 19th century, reflecting the relocation of the capital to Praia.
Over time, it ended up being buried, just like the base of the old Church of the Misericórdia, whose central nave is visible, though only traces of the walls remain, some with fragments of painted tiles near the floor, their colour variations bearing witness to the passage of time.
The bell tower, which was the only part of the complex still above ground, remains standing and completes the picture, together with the side chapels and what is believed to have been the bishop’s residence, with its floor and staircase preserved, situated above the complex.
“This space served as the seat of Cabo Verde for over a century, whilst the construction of the cathedral, up there, was not yet complete,” explains André Teixeira.
There is “a strong religious presence, central, as was traditional, with the church linked to the hospital”, evoking “the dual role of the misericórdias, providing social and health care”.
In February 2025, during the initial phase of the surveys, André Teixeira told Lusa, in a local report, that only “the tip of the iceberg” was visible at that stage.
There were “the tops of two low walls” and “nothing else could be seen”, he recalls, but the result surprised the team from Nova and the IPC.
“We could only see small structures from the Misericórdia complex, but now, after several excavation campaigns, we are uncovering a monumental structure, larger than we had thought,” Jaylson Monteiro, an archaeologist at the IPC, told Lusa.
In the long term, “everything will be completely different: there is a finalised architectural design; there will be a museum space and a protective structure to prevent deterioration caused by rain or bad weather. This will take on a whole new look,” he said.
The aim is to enhance the Cidade Velha visitor experience, combining heritage preservation with benefits for local residents and tourism – the driving force behind Cabo Verde's economy, which has been growing in recent years thanks to increased air links with Europe.
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