The art of black pottery has a unique expression in the North of Portugal, distributed along the Verin-Penacova geological fault axis. The clay extracted in this basin enabled the development of quality pottery that was distinct from other regions, particularly due to the black color of its pieces. Among the different pottery centers in the Douro Valley area of influence, those in the municipality of Vila Real, between the villages of Mondrões, Vila Marim, Parada de Cunhos and Lordelo, whose production was sold in the neighboring municipalities up to the Tua River, have a particular importance.

The pottery tradition in this territory dates to the Middle Ages, being documented in the charter of honor of Lordelo, given by King Manuel I, in 1519. This document imposes the payment of a monthly fee of four and a half “reais” a year to potters, the same as they paid half-couple owners. This was an exception among the inhabitants of that place, which, at that time, attested to the importance of these craftsmen within the community.

This pottery tradition has persisted to the present day only in the village of Bisalhães, where ancestral techniques and know-how of working and baking clay are still maintained, and were distinguished by UNESCO since 2016, as Intangible Heritage of Humanity. In the current production, the use of the low wheel, unique in Europe, stands out, as well as the decorative motifs developed by female hands and, above all, the cooking process, also a prevalence of ancestral and very rudimentary techniques.

As a heritage, this is an art created and recreated by its community. Each artisan and their families are part of an important process of cultural preservation, which is increasingly urgent, given the advanced age of most artisans. The maintenance of art and its transmission is the greatest form of safeguard, along with its cultural valorization, inside and outside the community.

With the adhesion of the Municipality of Vila Real to the Associação Portuguesa das Cidades e Vilas da Cerâmica (APTCVC), it is intended to take another important step in this direction, with the dissemination and promotion of this ancestral art, not only at the national level but mainly at the international level, taking advantage of Portugal’s presence, through APTCVC, in the European Grouping of Ceramic Cities. Another great advantage of being part of APTCVC is allowing the development and participation in network activities, working closely with other national and European cities, giving more visibility to the pottery of Bisalhães.