FARO  , the

capital of a district bearing the same name, in southern Portugal; at the terminus of the Lisbon-Faro railway, and on the Atlantic Ocean . Pop . (1900) 11,789 . Faro is an episcopal see, with a Renaissance cathedral of great size, an ecclesiastical seminary, and a ruined castle surrounded by Moorish fortifications . Its broad but shallow harbour is protected on the south by the long island of Caes, and a number of sandy islets, which, being constantly enlarged by silt from the small river Fermoso, render the entrance of large vessels impossible . Fishing is an important industry, and fish, with wine, fruit, cork, baskets and sumach, are the principal articles of export . Little has been done to develop the mineral, resources of the district, which include tin, lead, antimony, and auriferous quartz . Faro was taken from the Moot, by Alphonso III. of Portugal (1248-1279) . It was sacked by the English in 1596, and nearly destroyed by an earthquake in 1755• - The administrative district of Faro coincides with the ancient kingdom and province of Algarve (q.v.); pop . (1900) 2SS5,i91; area, 1937 sq. m . •-saes - .