ARTS & CRAFTS HERITAGE
DISCOVERING THE ANCIENT SKILLS
The Alentejo has a rich heritage of arts and crafts, with skills and traditions handed down through the ages by successive generations.
The tradition of small-scale artisan crafts runs deep. Each utilizes the local natural resources with individual villages and areas often becoming renowned for specific crafts. Portalegre is famed for exquisite tapestries, Arraiolos for its intricate carpets and Nisa for delicate embroidery and red clay pottery. Fine hand woven blankets come from Monsaraz and Mértola.
The practical and the artistic merge happily, with cork used in all kinds of everyday goods and fashion, and time honoured pottery techniques creating functional objects and spectacular pieces. Find museums and places to visit
