May 1910: across the globe, excitement is mounting as Halley's Comet approaches. Rumors of the Earth's atmosphere being poisoned by gases in the tail of the famous celestial body trigger reactions of fear fueled by superstition and ignorance. Portugal is no exception to this wave of collective apprehension and fear. Entire families gather to celebrate a kind of last supper and die together. In the year that marks the centenary of the establishment of the Republic in Portugal, it is also a century since the greatest event of collective terror and fear experienced by the Portuguese population in the course of its history. The mental fragilities of deep, insecure, and superstitious Portugal came to the fore in all their tragic and comic splendor.
