Porto de Mós, the clay and the people.

The settlement of Porto de Mós goes back into ancient prehistory, in ancient times, when the Romans had a strong presence, documented by funerary monuments and the occupation that reveals itself in the traces of pottery and construction (tegula and imbrex).

We can find the origins of the current village back in the Middle Ages. Achieved by the hands of Christians, probably in 1147, by D. Afonso Henriques, the Foral Letter was assigned in 1305, by D. Dinis, confirmed by D. Manuel I in 1515. In August 14th, 1385, took place the most emblematic Portuguese battle, Aljubarrota, in the Plateau of S. Jorge.

The village name reveals its location in a relevant local of passage, and also the value of the milling industry and the stone exploration to build millstones. Until today, the windmills are a landmark and memory of time gone by.

Since the moment that ceramic came into people’s daily lives, the deposits exploration fed crafts and pottery industries, for construction and domestic use, in a current and decorative way. In the Contemporary Period, this diverse industry focused on county northwest, in axis of Juncal/ Cruz da Légua/ S. Jorge.

In the 20th century, the pottery industry has been very intense. The utilitarian ceramic of “Red Clay” and common ceramic with culinary purposes were deeply produced. Decorative pottery hand painted, with clay tones, blue and white, with geometric and natural motifs, was present in diversified typologies.

The pottery construction has been counting with decorative tile productions. The “Real Fábrica do Juncal”, founded in 1770, produced tile, utilitarian and decorative ware for more than a century. The pottery construction justified the emergence of big industries, today almost obsolete units, but where one can guess the histories about factory work of a rural community.

In potteries and factories molded the clay and the people’s rhythm.