At first glance this looks like a sculpture of children playing football. Well it is, but this street sculpture is part of the ‘Caminho das Lendas’ in Olhão, which means there is a legend to be told.

On the trail in Olhao

It is the ‘Legend of the Enchanted Moorish Boy’ who asks to play with some Portuguese boys. They agree, but it soon becomes apparent that he is not very skilled at the game they are playing. They are quite frank in telling him this, and so his response is to encourage one of them, Manuel, to go and play with him elsewhere. Manuel agrees and soon finds himself climbing down through a trap door where he discovers a magnificent palace full of treasures. At which point Manuel becomes overwhelmed and distressed by it all and so the Moorish boy takes him back to his family and stays.  Unfortunately however only Manuel can see the boy, and eventually his mother decides he needs help. So she takes him to their church, where Manuel confesses. However the result is probably not what Manuel had hoped for as he never saw his beloved friend again.

91 thoughts

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    1. oh can’t wait to see what you have shared, be there as soon as I have caught up on Friday’s comments. Tad behind thanks to a bug yesterday.

      PS Glad you still remember your imaginary friend xx

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    1. is there on?! Guess there must be 🙂

      Will be there shortly to discover all, just need to catch up after Friday’s bug. Mine was a different sort to yours!

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  17. Ah, the invisible friend. Aren’t legends marvellous? As is the photo.
    Mine’s from an enchanted place today too, where giants played

    “The giants of Trecrobben and St Michael’s Mount often met for a game at bob-buttons. The Mount was the “bob,” on which flat masses of granite were placed to serve as buttons, and Trecrobben Hill was the “mit,” or the spot from which the throw was made. This order was sometimes reversed.”

    https://wp.me/p79zFr-27o

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    1. oh thank you so much . . . . and love that you have shared enchantment too. So sorry I didn’t make it across yesterday, not a great day. However full of cheer this morning despite the damp and grey!

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. thank you so much . . not the easiest legend sculpture on the trail to photograph! And yes I agree there are so many layers to this tale, many of the Moorish legends I’ve noticed are layered.

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