The Lello Bookshop, often referred to as the Lello and Brother Bookshop or the Chardron Bookshop, is a bookstore that is situated in the heart of Porto's old city centre. It may be found at 144 Rua das Carmelitas, close to Torre dos Clérigos (a baroque bell tower, built by Nicolau Nasoni).
The bookshop has been hailed as one of the most beautiful in the world by a variety of people and organisations due to its historical and artistic significance, including the Spanish author Enrique Vila-Matas, the British newspaper The Guardian, and the Australian travel guide publisher Lonely Planet.
Due to the widespread perception that J.K. Rowling was influenced by the interior design of the building for her Harry Potter serial, it has grown to be a significant tourist destination, with one million visitors in 2018. At the end of May 2020, J.K. Rowling took it upon herself to refute this using her personal Twitter account.
The business was established in 1869 at Rua dos Clérigos, n.o. 296-298 in Porto under the name "Libreria Internacional de Ernesto Chardron" (Livraria Internacional de Ernesto Chardron). When its creator unexpectedly passed away at the age of 45, it was bought by the company "Lugan & Genelioux Sucessores," which soon had just Mathieux Lugan as an owner. Three bookshops in Oporto that belonged to A. R. da Cruz Coutino, Francisco Gomes da Fonseca, and Paulo Podestá were acquired by the Chardron Bookshop in 1891.
Meanwhile, José Pinto de Sousa Lello and his brother-in-law David Lourenço Pereira established a business in 1881 that was primarily involved in the trading and publication of books. But once Pereira passed away, Sousa Lello decided to work with his brother, António Lello. Mathieuz Lugan transferred ownership of the Chardron Bookshop to the two brothers on June 30, 1894, renaming the business as José Pinto de Sousa Lellao & Irmo. The bookshop was operated by the two brothers until 1919.
The bookshop building, which was created in 1906 by engineer Francisco Xavier Esteves, had a significant cultural impact at the time, mainly due to its decorations and design. Important Portuguese writers, artists, and politicians attended the building's inauguration on January 13, 1906, including Guerra Junqueiro, Abel Botelho, Joo Grave, Bento Carqueja, Aurélio da Paz dos Reis, José Leite de Vasconcelos, and Afonso Costa.
The business was renamed "Libreria Lello e Irmo, Lda." on May 24, 1919, and Raul Reis Lello, António Lello's son, also joined the organisation. Jose Pinto da Silva Lello and Edgar da Silva Lello later joined the business in 1924. The name of the bookstore was changed to "Libreria Lello" only after José Pereira da Costa, António Lello's son-in-law, joined the business in 1930. After José da Costa departed the business five years later, the bookstore was renamed "Lello & Irmo." António Lello passed away in 1953, and Raul Reis Lello in 1949. Edgar Pinto da Silva Lello and José Pinto da Silda Lello, who both passed away in 1989 and 1971, respectively, took over the operation of the bookstore following these two deaths.
The bookstore was modernised and a new business, Prólogo Livreiros, S.A., was established in order to adapt to the times.
which one of the Lello family's heirs is a part. In 1995, the entire area was renovated, the service was modernised and computerised, and a gallery and gathering area were built, which has since grown to be a significant cultural hub for the city of Oporto.
Four euros are required to enter the bookstore as of July 23, 2015; this price is waived for book purchases. The cost of admission in July 2018 is five euros. The high number of tourists who visit the bookshop is counted using this fee. In actuality, there are daily counts of over 3,000 travellers. Additionally, it serves to produce income because the bookshop will likely need to perform some restoration work at some point because of the constant traffic that damages the building. Sales at the Lello Bookshop have increased by threefold in just three months as a result of the imposition of this levy.
The internal window and façade renovations were inaugurated on June 30, 2016. The first stage of the project was funded in part by entrance fees. For the first time since it was created, the 55 glass panel stained glass window, built by Dutch architect Gerardus Samuel van Krieken, was taken apart. The glass was cleaned, restored, and the damage was fixed, restoring a brightness that had been missing for a while.
More than one million people visited the bookstore in 2016 alone, which equates to over 3,000 visitors every day. According to data, 40 percent of the visitors were of Spanish descent, followed by 15.9% of French, 15.2% of Portuguese, 6.6% of Brazilians, 4.6% of Germans, and 3.1% of Americans.
The English publication The Guardian ranked it third most beautiful bookshop in the world in 2008, while Enrique Vila-Matas termed it "the most beautiful bookshop in the world."
The Lello Bookshop, one of the most iconic structures of the Portuguese neo-Gothic style, was built in accordance with a plan by the engineer Xavier Esteves and stands out significantly in the nearby urban environment. The architecture and ornamental components of this ensemble demonstrate the preeminent style of the early 20th century.
The façade comprises two side windows, a central entrance, and a sizable folding arch. Three rectangular windows may be seen above, each flanked by a José Bielman painting of a figure that stands for "Art" or "Science." Three pilarees with spires atop them and arched apertures in the neo-Gothic style complete the façade. The windows are topped with cut-out signs. Plant motifs, geometric patterns, and the inscription "Lello e Irmo" under the windows complete the decoration.
The pillars that the sculptor Romo Jnior used to create the busts of the authors Antero de Quental, Eça de Queirós, Camilo Castelo Branco, Teófilo Braga, Tomás Ribeiro, and Guerra Junqueiro beneath the canopies support the shattered arches inside. The most notable aspects of the bookstore are the carved ceilings, the sizable glass window with the bookshop's motto, "Decus in Labore," and the wide staircase leading to the first floor.
Another well-known feature of the Lello bookstore is its stairway. As J.K. Rowling moved to Porto to work as an English teacher at an academy, it has been suggested that they served as the model for the Hogwarts stairs in the Harry Potter books. It is untrue, nevertheless, that any scenes from the Harry Potter movies were shot in this bookstore.