The church is dedicated to Our Lady of the Palm and belongs to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of São Salvador da Bahia.

The church was established in 1830, and expanded to house members of the Order of Discalced Augustinians in Salvador and their missionaries from other Portuguese colonies.

In contrast, the church has a richly decorated interior, with paintings, images, furniture, and religious implements from the 16th and 17th century.

A royal order issued in 1778 mandated that the convent serve as a refuge in Salvador for Augustinian missionaries arriving from "São Tomé Island and lands of the coast of Africa.

"[3][1][4] Miguel Pereira da Costa, a military engineer of the Lisbon Historical Overseas Archives (Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino de Lisboa), arrived in Brazil in 1711.

The model, with a plan in the shape of a "T", a rectangular nave, a chancel flanked by two symmetrical rooms, a sacristy, and consistory, is found in both churches.

Full ownership of the church and convent by the Holy Cross brotherhood was confirmed in a royal degree of March 7, 1829.

[3][1] The Church and Convent of Our Lady of the Palm is of stone masonry with extensive use of wood in the interior, notably the nave.

A lioz limestone inlay panel of the floor of the chancel is in white, yellow, grey, and red and has the name of the Brother of Our Lady of the Palm (Irmandade de N.S.

A commemorative marker was placed in the church in 1898 that states that the Our Lady statue was brought from Lisbon in 1630; no evidence exists to confirm or deny the origin of the work.