• Monday, Jul. 3, 2017
Portugal nixes claim director Terry Gilliam's film harmed convent
In this file photo dated Monday, Sept. 2, 2013, movie director Terry Gilliam arrives for the screening of his movie 'The Zero Theorem' at the 70th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, FILE)
  • LISBON, Portugal (AP)
  • --

Portuguese authorities have rejected a television program's claims that one of the country's most cherished historic monuments was damaged during the shooting of a film by director and former Monty Python star Terry Gilliam.

The General-Directorate for Heritage says an investigation has found that the 12th-century Convent of Christ suffered only "insignificant" damage during a recent location shoot for "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote."  The report published Monday said a program by public broadcaster RTP alleging wider damage "lacked rigor and revealed a lack of scientific knowledge."

Gilliam has previously called the allegations "ignorant nonsense."

The convent was a stronghold of the Knights Templar, a Christian military order founded in 1119, and is classified as a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

 


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