Saint Anthony and advertising

The use of the image of Saint Anthony in promotional material goes hand in hand with the history of advertising in Portugal throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. An example of this is the 134 years that separate the advertising phrase ‘the lottery miracle for next June 11th’ accompanied by the image of St Anthony, and the slogan used by a brand in the last edition of the Lisbon Festivities, ‘Blessed is the friend that’s easy to find.’

These are just two of the examples of the recurrent use of the image and reference to the miraculous powers of Lisbon's most popular saint in advertising in this exhibition, curated by Eduardo Cintra Torres.

The posters, press adverts, labels and flyers reflect the tastes of each era, always emphasising the close connection to the saint of whom everything is asked in times of difficulty.

As an extension of the exhibition, the Museu of Lisbon team created a collection of stickers for WhatsApp that give a relatable and contemporary voice to this first portuguese influencer. You need to install the Sticker.ly app to download the stickers.