Potuguese Tiles
by Museum of Azulejos, Lisbon

The book Portuguese Tiles from the National Museum of Azulejos, Lisbon gives us a fascinating insight into the history of Iberian Tiles in genral and Portuguese Tiles in particular. Azulejos are glazed polychrome tiles. The book also covers the history of the tile museum itself, which dates back to a convent founded in the early 16th C by Quenn Leonor of Portugal.

The three main sections are 'The History of the Museum', 'The History of the Collection', and 'The Collection'. The collection itself extends from the 15th C to the present day, although the emphasis is on the period 16th-19th century.

Tiles have a long history. The origins of Portuguese Tiles -'Azulejos' - can be traced back to the 15th C, when they were used throughout Portugal and its dominions, e.g. Brazil. Tiles are manifest in many places in Portugal: the palaces of Sintra or Fronteira, the Cloister of Oporto Cathedral or on the streets of Caldas da Rainha, to name a few. Iberian tiles are in evidenve in the three great Iberian cities of Grnada, Seville and Valencia. The designs from the 15th C onwards consiist of crosses, squares hexagons etc. and may have been influenced by Islamic traditions from North Africa.

Image courtesy of Ceramic Tiles from Spain

Related Pages:
Ceramic Tiles on the Web
Printing Ceramics on Tiles

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