[3] The friars of the Franciscan Order arrived in Salvador in 1587 at the invitation of Dom Antônio Muniz Barreiros, third Bishop of Bahia.

Friar Melchior de Santa Catarina, Custodian Priest of Olinda, sent an appeal in 1585 to Pope Sixtus V to establish a convent on the site.

The works on the current convent began in 1686 under Father Vicente das Chagas following a grandiose design that took decades to complete.

[6] The Church of São Francisco of Salvador is constructed of Bahian sandstone, including the walls, pilasters, and façade.

The smooth tiles covering the towers are also from a later period and serve further to accentuate the main body of the façade was originally in dark sandstone.

[1][7] A large cross in lioz marble, imported from Lisbon, sits in the broad square in front of the church.

A large cross (Portuguese: cruzeiro) was common to Franciscan churches in Brazil; it demarcated the sacred space of an urban area.

All interior surfaces--walls, pillars, vaults and ceilings--are covered by golden sculpted gilt woodwork and paintings.

[10][11] Blue-white tile (azulejo) panels, by Bartolomeu Antunes de Jesus and imported from Lisbon, cover the lower parts of the walls of the main chapel and transept and depict scenes of the life of St Francis of Assisi.

The wooden ceiling of the entrance hall (portaria) was painted with scenes in illusionistic perspective by José Joaquim da Rocha in 1774.

Stone was ordered from Boipeba Island in present-day Cairu, Bahia, to construct the cloister by Frei Alvaro da Conceição.

The cloister is circled by arches supported by stone columns, and its walkways provided shade from the harsh climate of Brazil.

It served as a place for private meditation, community gatherings, interior processions; in contrast to the public use of the church.

[10][1][11][2] A monumental set of blue-and-white azulejo tile panels were placed around the entirety of the cloister in the final period of construction.

[10][12] The artwork of the azulejos were inspired by the work of the Flemish artist Otto van Veen, also known as Octavius Vaenius (c.1556 – 6 May 1629), print in the emblem book Quinti Horati Flacci Emblemata, first published in 1607.

They variously depict citizens, soldiers, pagan gods, fauna, flora, European architecture, and putti.

[10][12] The sacristy of the São Francisco Church and Convent is located directly behind the high altar and is accessed via chapels to either side of the chancel.