The Portuguese azulejos which are ceramic artistic tiles, are famous worldwide, and the tradition started a time long ago. That’s why when you visit the Convent of Christ in the City of Tomar you find this kind of tile workmanship everywhere, just like these tile paintings, which seem to be from the 16th century and are essentially based on biblical scenes.
Portuguese tile mural paintings at the Convent of Christ in the City of Tomar
These tile paintings at the Christ Convent in Tomar are basically inspired on biblical scenes of the Catholic Church
Another two tile paintings at the Convent of Christ with religious themes from the 16th century
In continuation to this topic which deals with Portuguese artistic ceramic tiles, or “azulejos” as the Portuguese call them, I found these set of photo of a pharmacy in Tomar quite interesting. This is Torres Pinheiro Pharmacy, at Rua Serpa Pinto in Tomar, and it used to belong to the parents of a friend of mine called Miguel Lopes. They no longer own this pharmacy but it’s still very much active. Anyway the topic is tiles and the walls outside the pharmacy are covered with them.
This is the front door of Pinheiro Pharmacy in Tomar and the walls on either side are covered with Portuguese tiles
This is a window of Torres Pinheiro Pharmacy, a very old pharmacy in Tomar. Its director is Dr. José Duarte Vitorino
The tiles extend to the walls surrounding that blue door which isn't part of the pharmacy. On the right is a poster criticizing what they consider to be abuses of NATO against other countries
Another series of photos about the Portuguese artistic ceramic tiles (Azulejos) in Tomar. This is a widely used decoration method and a long tradition in Portugal. The first photo was shot at the building of the Tourist Centre located at Rua Serpa Pinto (Corredoura) and it says ‘Comissão de Iniciativa e Turismo’ (Committee of Initiative and Tourism). The second photo is a street name sign of a narrow street in Tomar called Rua do Pé da Costa de Baixo. The third picture of the ceramic tile sign is located on top of a staircase in the Town Council Building located at Praça da República.
Ceramic Tiles sign on the building of the Committee of Initiative and Tourism. This is the building where tourists can get all the information they need about the tourist attractions in Tomar
The City of Tomar often uses ceramic tiles signs to indicate the name of streets and alleys. This sign is of a street near the road that leads to the Castle of the Knights Templar in Tomar
Sign in the Town Council Building in Tomar that says 'O Povo é que mais ordena'. In English it means 'The People is charge'. This sentence was inspired in a revolutionary song of the Portuguese singer Zeca Afonso
There is a long tradition in Portugal of using ceramic tiles. These tiles are called Azulejos in Portuguese, and since the middle ages it has been the most widely used method of decoration in my country of origin. These tiles are glazed by hand individually and hand painted, which makes them valuable pieces of art. The Azulejos (tiles) seen at these photos are from the Convent of Christ in Tomar which were decorated with 16th century tiles.
This is a bench in the gardens of the Convent of Christ and the Castle of Tomar. These benches are all decorated with 16th century tiles, glazed and painted by hand
These are artisitic Portuguese azulejos (ceramic tiles) inside the Convent of Christ in the Tomar. Crossing that door leads you into a balcony where you can see one of the cloisters in the convent
This is a corridor inside the Convent of Christ in the City of Tomar. Entire walls in the convent are decorated with 16th century traditional azulejos (tiles) of Portugal
Not all buildings in the City of Tomar have ceramic tiles covering their front walls, but some do, as you can see on these photos. Some people find it very artistic, others not so much. In any case these are very old houses located in old areas of the town and at the time, covering the walls of buildings with hand made tiles, was probably a sign of taste, demanded good craftsman and was possibly much more expensive than normal painted walls.
The front wall of this house is covered with hand made ceramic tiles and include artistic designs. This building was possibly the headquarters of a company called Havaneza, Lda., located at Rua Serpa Pinto in Tomar
Another house at Rua Serpa Pinto (Corredoura) in Tomar, whose wall is covered with ceramic tiles. There is a very old pharmacy on the ground floor, called Pharmacia Pinheiro, whose wall is also covered with tiles.
This building, also decorated with artistic ceramic tiles, is on the other side of the City of Tomar, at Rua Marquês de Pombal, next door of the house where I was born
Right at the entrance of a three stars inn called Pensão Residêncial União, at Rua Serpa Pinto (Corredoura) in Tomar, you can see two beautiful Ceramic tile murals on either side of the door. The mural on the left represents the famous Chapter Window, and you can view the real thing at the Convent of Christ in Tomar. The mural on the right depicts a scenery of Nabão River from the 19th or early 20th Century. I shot these photos at night, which may not the best time of the day to enjoy these two pieces or artistic tiling, but there you go.
This is the main entrance of the inn Pensão Residêncial União, at Corredoura (Rua Serpa Pinto) in the City of Tomar, and on either side of the door, you can view two beautiful and artistic ceramic tile murals
This artistic ceramic tile mural at Residêncial União in Tomar, depicts the famous Window of the Chapter House which in Portuguese is called Janela do Capítulo.
On the right side of the main entrance of Pensão Residêncial União in the City of Tomar, you can view this beautiful ceramic tile mural depicting a scenery of Nabão River, from the 19th or early 20th century
The location of this tile painting or tile mural (azulejos artísticos) in the City of Tomar is at an old cobblestone street stairs which is an extension of the street Rua da Cascalheira. So I believe that this street steps are still called Rua da Cascalheira. In any case I used to walk down this street stairs everyday, as my mother’s apartment is nearby at Travessa da Cascalheira in Tomar. These three photos bellow are of the same tile painting but with different levels of details and it alludes to Festa dos Tabuleiros (Festival of the Trays) which, by the way, is going to be held between 2 and 11 of July 2011.
Traditional and artistic ceramic tile mural at a cobblestone street stairs which is an extension of the street Rua da Cascalheira in Tomar
The same tile painting but a little bit more detailed. This is a good piece of street art based on the Portuguese tradition of hand painting tiles
Close up of this artistic tile mural of Festa dos Tabuleiros (Festival of the Trays) in the City of Tomar in Portugal