Trip to Vila Viçosa and Estremoz – Lyceum International Club of Lisbon

On 26 and 27 March, the Club organised a trip to Vila Viçosa and Estremoz to visit the Raquel de Castro Marble Museum, the Ducal Palace and the Berardo Tile Museum in Estremoz. In their free time, the group took a short stroll around the main squares.

Marble Museum

At the Marble Museum, located in the now-disused Gradinha quarry, we learnt about the entire process of marble processing — an activity that dates back to Roman times in this region — from extraction to the objects, tools and machinery used.

When it emerges from the rock in large, irregular blocks, it is called rough marble. Below, druses of carbide crystals.

During prospecting, a drilling machine is used to drill into the ground to confirm the presence of marble and to determine its characteristics and quality.

Tools used in quarrying, such as pickaxes, jackhammers, drill bits and chisels, at a time when there were no machines.

Below, heavier machinery outside the museum.

Model of work in the extraction areas of a quarry

Art is also evident in the marble sculptures.

Engraving on Ruivina (black marble) using the stippling technique by Luís Silva

Avenida de Vila Viçosa, by Alexandra Ferreira

Sculptures outside the museum.

Once the visit was over, we enjoyed a lively lunch, after which we visited the Ducal Palace.

Ducal Palace

We began our tour of the Ducal Palace in the Treasury Room, where items of jewellery, paintings, ceramics, sculptures, glassware and a collection of Indo-Portuguese ivories are on display.

Below is the processional cross of Catherine of Bragança, crafted from gold and precious stones (diamonds, rubies, emeralds, pearls and polychrome enamels), commissioned by her father, King John IV, from the goldsmith Filipe Vallejo.

A 14th-century reliquary chest, featuring Limoges enamel on an iron base, with polychrome enamels depicting Christ, saints and angels.

This was followed by a guided tour of the various rooms in the Palace. The marble staircase is adorned with a mural depicting the capture of the African stronghold of Azamor in 1513 – the landing of the troops, preparations for the siege, and the siege of the stronghold.

The Tapestry Room – featuring tapestries from the 17th and 18th centuries, a bust of Queen Amelia by the sculptor Teixeira Lopes, and, on the walls, 17th-century polychrome tiles in blue and yellow.

The Medusa Room – featuring ducal portraits commissioned by King Charles from painters such as José Malhoa, Columbano and Carlos Reis, depicting Queen Mary I, King John VI, King Peter IV, Queen Mary II, King Peter V, King Luís Filipe and King Charles. The walls are adorned with polychrome tiles from Talavera de la Reina.

The ceiling frescoes, by Tomás Luís, depict the mythological story of Medusa and Perseus.

The Hall of the Dukes or the Tudescos is the grand hall and the largest room in the palace.

The ceiling is decorated with coffered panels depicting the 16 dukes up to King José, the first duchess and the Constable Nuno Álvares Pereira.

Late 18th-century dining room, designed by Queen Mary I.

Below are Aubusson tapestries depicting episodes from the life of Alexander.

Ceiling featuring mythological motifs, notably Neptune

The Golden Room or the Duchess’s Room – these were the chambers of Lady Catherine, and the furnishings were brought from the Palace of Necessities.

Hercules Room – 17th- and 18th-century Dutch cabinets and Domingos Sequeira’s painting ‘The Preaching of St John the Baptist’.

Ceiling painting depicting Hercules fighting the Nemean lion

The Hall of Virtues – featuring 17th-century Gobelins tapestries depicting two episodes from the life of Moses. The bust is of King Ferdinand II.

A coffered ceiling featuring paintings of the seven virtues – Faith, Hope, Charity, Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance and Wisdom.

David’s Room or the Giant’s Room – featuring paintings of King Charles I, such as ‘The Cork Oak’ and ‘The Moroccan’. On the walls are rare 17th-century tiles from Talavera de la Reina.

On the ceiling, frescoes depicting biblical scenes of David defeating Goliath, with the coat of arms of the Dukes of Bragança framed in the centre.

D. Duarte Room – A 17th-century tapestry on cardboard, created in Brussels by Paul Rubens.

Indo-Portuguese Room

A portrait of King Charles entitled ‘King Charles and his General Staff’, painted by Carlos Reis

Small Gallery

The King’s Room – the room where King Charles spent his last night before being assassinated and where some of his uniforms are on display.

The King’s Study, featuring some ceramic pieces painted by the King himself

Queen Amelia’s bedroom

The Queen’s Bedroom – furniture made in France from maple wood

Kitchen – built in the second half of the 18th century, during the reign of King John V, it houses over 600 copper utensils spread across three distinct areas: the food preparation area, the oven and the barbecue.

Porcelain Galleries – an exhibition of over a hundred pieces from China dating from the 12th to the 19th centuries, mainly from the 16th and 17th centuries, from the Amaral Cabral collection.

Exit the Ducal Palace through the Gate of Knots

Estremoz

In Estremoz, we took a guided tour of the Berardo Museum, housed in the Tocha Palace, which boasts a remarkable collection of tiles. There, we learnt about the techniques, designs and production methods of tiles from ancient Persia, through Dutch, Italian and Japanese styles, and particularly those of Al-Andalus and the Portuguese period of the 16th and 17th centuries, right up to the present day – in other words, the history of tile-making over the last eight centuries.

We began our tour on the ground floor with Islamic art.

Tile from the Qajar dynasty, second half of the 19th century, Tehran

Tile from the Salavida dynasty, 17th century

This was followed by the legacy of Al-Andalus.

16th-century panelling, built in the Seville style

16th-century panelling, built in the Portuguese style

Early 17th-century panel painting by Hernando Valladares

A panel of patterned tiles, revealing the influence of Talavera de la Reina pottery during the transition to the 17th century

Panel from the first half of the 17th century, depicting Saint Francis of Paola

17th-century tiling

Altar frontal bearing the Carneiro family coat of arms, mid-17th century

Heraldic decorative panel featuring the coat of arms of Diogo Botelho Chacão, mid-17th century

Below, a set of 17th-century panels known as the Monkey Series – satirical scenes featuring apes, intended to decorate a room with over 25 panels belonging to the Henriques de Miranda family. In the centre, ‘Assault on a Fortress’. On the right, ‘Tristan and the Sirens’ playing musical instruments, with a ‘Pair of Big Cats’ trying to reach the pots hanging from the tree on the left.

A boat trip and a carriage ride, third quarter of the 17th century

Panel with a brocade pattern, inspired by textiles, mid-17th century (the standardised tiles of this period are named according to their various patterns)

Dutch Tiles

Some examples of Dutch tile art, from left to right: ‘The Old Man’, a Delft tile panel depicting scenes from the daily lives of various social classes (a recurring theme in the tiles produced in this city) and ‘The Warriors’ (first quarter of the 17th century).

Baroque Tiles

Tiled panel ‘Taste and Hearing’, by Teotónio dos Santos, 18th century

Paintings in the museum’s entrance hall: ‘Halberdier’ by Nicolau de Freitas, 1730–1740 (right) and ‘Squire’ by Domingos de Almeida, 1740 (left)

Below, a set of five panels by Domingos de Almeida with a Eucharistic theme, 18th century.

‘The Wedding at Cana’, on the left, and ‘The Last Supper’ on the right. In the centre, the ‘Confessional’ panel depicting Christ crucified with Mary Magdalene at the foot of the Cross, and below, a hermit in prayer.

Regency and Rococo Tiles

Panel by Nicolau de Freitas, 18th century

A woman with children and a Chinese couple reading a book (on the left), and two Chinese men drinking tea (on the right), 18th century

A woman and a child fishing with a cormorant on a boat, 18th century

Panels depicting gallant figures, by Nicolau de Freitas (in the palace kitchen)

Neoclassical Tiling

Panel by Francisco de Paula e Oliveira, 1805, from the Royal Factory of Rato (donated by the County of Refóis to Almendo Afonso)

Bench with ornamental carvings by Francisco de Paula e Oliveira, first quarter of the 19th century

Woman feeding turkeys, second half of the 19th century

Mural at the Devesas Ceramics Factory in Porto

Ornamental composition tiles by Francisco Jorge da Costa, early 19th century

Tiles from Caldas da Rainha

Above, in the centre, a panel by Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro entitled ‘Frogs and Water Lilies’, in relief and glazed tiles, 1904. On either side, panels entitled ‘Grasshoppers’ and ‘Butterflies and Ears of Corn’ from the early 20th century.

Art Nouveau Tiles

Panel by José António Jorge Pinto – Constância Ceramics Factory, 1903-1905

Ornamental frieze from the Sacavém Pottery Factory

Historicist and Revivalist Tiles

Panel of Queen Isabella of Aragon, by Leopoldo Battistini and Viriato Silva, 1924 – Constância Ceramics Factory

Panels by Pereira Cão, 1910, removed from the façade of a demolished building in Campo Grande

Contemporary and Designer Tiles

Tile panel by Frederico George for the former TAP shop, featuring a horseman against a background of an astrological chart and an armillary sphere

4 panels by Jorge Barradas, 1970, Ceramics Factory of the Widow of Lamego

‘Boy playing the flute’ and ‘Girl playing with a wreath of flowers’

‘Boy playing the drum’ and ‘Girl holding her skirt’

From Querubim Lapa, five panels created in 1968 for a farmhouse kitchen, inspired by 18th-century kitchen décor. They are on display in the former kitchen of the Tocha Palace. The message ‘Quinta do Sol’ is concealed and can only be read when reflected in a mirror.

On one of the jars, the date of the event is written in Roman numerals

Plate featuring a pig’s head, fruit and flowers

A vase of flowers and fruit suggesting a human figure

A female figure whose torso is formed by a basket of flowers

Composition of the genre ‘The World Turned Upside Down’. The vase bears the signature of Querubim, painted very discreetly.

Friezes by Manuela Madureira, from 1963, for the restaurant of the former Hotel Estoril Sol

Tocha Palace or Palace of the Henriques

The palace boasts a remarkable collection of tiled panels on the staircase and in various rooms. On the staircase leading to the main hall, known as the ‘Hall of Battles’, there are panels depicting hunting scenes, dating from the late 18th century.