{{Short description|Portuguese folk tale and symbol}} {{Expand Portuguese|topic=cult|Lenda do Galo de Barcelos|date=July 2022}} {{Expand Spanish|topic=cult|Leyenda del Gallo de Barcelos|date=July 2022}} [[Image:PA2900302 galo emiliarocha medio.jpg|thumb|right|230px|Rooster of Barcelos]] The '''Rooster of Barcelos''' ({{langx|pt|Galo de Barcelos}}) is a common symbol of Portugal.

==Folk tale== [[Image:Thornton2012-053 (8114900101).jpg|thumb|right|230px|The Rooster of Barcelos is sold as a souvenir from Portugal.]] The folk tale of the rooster of Barcelos,<ref>[http://sotaodaines.chrome.pt/sotao/lenda_do_galo_de_barcelos.html ''Lenda do Galo de Barcelos'' (Portuguese)]</ref> tells the story of a dead rooster's miraculous intervention in proving the innocence of a man who had been falsely convicted and sentenced to death. The story is associated with the 17th-century [[Calvary (sculpture)|calvary]] that is part of the collection of the Archaeological Museum located in Paço dos Condes, a gothic-style palace in [[Barcelos, Portugal|Barcelos]], a city in the [[Braga District]] of northwest [[Portugal]].

According to the tale, a landowner in Barcelos had stolen silver and the inhabitants of that city were looking for the thief. A man from [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]] became a suspect, despite his pleas of innocence. The [[Galician people|Galician]] swore that he was merely passing through Barcelos on a [[pilgrimage]] to [[Santiago de Compostela]] to fulfill a promise.

Nevertheless, the authorities arrested the man and condemned him to [[Hanging|hang]]. The man asked them to take him in front of the [[judge]] who had condemned him. The authorities honoured his request and took him to the house of the magistrate, who was holding a banquet. Affirming his innocence, the man pointed to a roasted [[rooster]] on top of the banquet table and exclaimed, "It is as certain that I am innocent as that rooster will crow when they hang me." The judge pushed aside his plate, deciding not to eat the rooster, but otherwise ignored the appeal.

However, while the pilgrim was hanged, the roasted rooster stood up on the table and crowed as predicted. Understanding his error, the judge ran to the gallows, to discover that the man had been saved from death thanks to a poorly made knot. The man was immediately freed.

Some years later, he returned to Barcelos to [[Sculpture|sculpt]] the ''Calvary (or Crucifix) to the Lord of the Rooster'' (Portuguese: "{{Lang|pt|Cruzeiro do Senhor do Galo}}") in praise to the [[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Virgin Mary]] and to [[James, son of Zebedee|Saint James]]. The monument is located in the Barcelos Archaeological Museum.

===Variations===

In all cases, the folk tale of the Rooster of Barcelos is about a dead rooster that crows to prove an accused man's innocence. However, variations to the story include: * The pilgrim is a guest whom the landowner invited to his banquet, where silver is stolen. * The pilgrim stays at a local inn, and the greedy owner of the inn accuses the pilgrim.<ref name="malha">{{cite web | url = http://www.malhatlantica.pt/aeiou/galo_barcelos.htm | title = Lenda do Galo de Barcelos | language = Portuguese | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101006134308/http://www.malhatlantica.pt/aeiou/galo_barcelos.htm |archive-date= October 6, 2010 }}</ref> * There are two pilgrims, father and son. The son is accused, and the father pleads his innocence by calling on the rooster to crow.<ref>[http://www.infopedia.pt/$o-senhor-do-galo-de-barcelos-e-o-milagre-do ''O Senhor do Galo de Barcelos e o Milagre do Enforcado'' (Portuguese), Infopédia (online). Porto: Porto Editora, 2003-2011. Retrieved on 2011 February 07.]</ref> * The rooster crows as soon as the accused man declares it will, so the man is never taken to the gallows. * The accused is not from Galicia. [[File:Hühner Santo D.jpg|thumb|The [[cathedral of Santo Domingo de la Calzada]] in Spain keeps two live chickens in remembrance of the local version of the miracle.|alt=A cock and a hen behind wrought bars.]] * The miracle is located in La Rioja, Spain, and associated to Saint [[Dominic de la Calzada]].

===In popular culture===

In the 1990s U.S. sitcom ''[[Seinfeld]]'', Elaine's first apartment, which she shares with a roommate who briefly dates Kramer, is shown furnished in kitschy style, cluttered with [[bric-a-brac]]—including a rooster of Barcelos. It can be seen in the episode "[[The Truth (Seinfeld)|The Truth]]", aired in 1991.<ref>[[The Truth (Seinfeld)]]: 19′18″</ref>

The rooster of Barcelos is used in the logo of [[Nando's]], a [[Johannesburg]]-based chicken restaurant chain.<ref>{{cite web |title=Nando's Chicken and the Portuguese Rooster |url=http://www.saywhydoi.com/nandos-chicken-and-the-portuguese-rooster/ |website=www.saywhydoi.com}}</ref>

==See also== {{Commons category}} * [[Symbols of Portugal]] * [[Gallic rooster]]

==References== <references/>

==External links== * [https://vimeo.com/3351270 Galo de Barcelos Video, by Daniel Oliveira Prins] * [https://www.cm-barcelos.pt/visitar/artesanato/galo-de-barcelos/ The legend of the Rooster of Barcelos at the Barcelos City Hall's website (Portuguese)]

[[Category:Portuguese folklore]] [[Category:National symbols of Portugal]] [[Category:Fictional chickens]] [[Category:Barcelos, Portugal]] [[Category:Mythological galliforms]] [[Category:Legendary birds]] [[Category:Chickens in art]] [[Category:Animals in Christianity]] [[Category:Camino de Santiago]]