Azulejo (Portuguese: [ɐzuˈleʒu, ɐzuˈlɐjʒu], Spanish: [aθuˈlexo]; from the Arabic al-

zillīj, ‫[)الزليج‬1][2] is a form of Portuguese and Spanish painted tin-

glazed ceramic tilework. Azulejos are found on the interior and exterior
of churches, palaces, ordinary houses, schools, and nowadays, restaurants, bars and
even railways or subway stations. They are an ornamental art form, but also had a specific
functional capacity like temperature control in homes.
There is also a tradition of their production in former Portuguese and Spanish colonies
in North America, South America, Goa (India), Lusophone Africa, East
Timor, Macau (China), and the Philippines. Azulejos constitute a major aspect
of Portuguese architecture to this day and are fixtures of buildings across Portugal and its
former territories. Many azulejos chronicle major historical and cultural aspects
of Portuguese history.

Contents

 1History
o 1.113th to 15th century
o 1.216th century
o 1.317th century
o 1.418th century
o 1.519th century
o 1.620th century
 2Elsewhere
 3Historical azulejo industries
 4State of protection
 5See also
 6References
 7Sources
 8External links

History[edit]
13th to 15th century[edit]
The word azulejo (as well as the Ligurian laggion[3]) is derived from the Arabic ‫( الزليج‬al-
zillīj): zellige, meaning "polished stone" because the original idea was to imitate the
Byzantine and Roman mosaics. This origin shows the unmistakable Arab influences in
many tiles: interlocking curvilinear, geometric or floral motifs. The craft of zellige is still in
use in the Arab world in two main traditions the "Egyptian Zalij" and the "Moroccan Zellige",
the latter being the most famous.
The Spanish city of Seville became the major centre of the Hispano-Moresque tile industry.
The earliest azulejos in the 13th century were alicatados (panels of tile-mosaic).[4] Tiles
were glazed in a single colour, cut into geometric shapes, and assembled to form
geometric patterns. Many examples can be admired in the Alhambra of Granada.[5] The old
techniques of cuerda seca ('dry string') and cuenca developed in Seville in the 15th
century[6] These techniques were introduced into Portugal by king Manuel I after a visit to
Seville in 1503. They were applied on walls and used for paving floors, such as can be
seen in several rooms, and especially the Arab Room of the Sintra National
Palace (including the famous cuenca tiles with the armillary sphere, symbol of king Manuel
I). Other important collec The Portuguese adopted the Moorish tradition of horror
vacui ('fear of empty spaces') and covered the walls completely with azulejos.
 

(Moorish) Azulejos (ca. 13th century[7]) of the Qubba of Cuarto Real de Santo Domingo,
Granada.

(Moorish) Alicatado in the Alhambra, circa 1350, Granada

 (Christian) Capilla de San Bartolomé (ca. 1410[8]), Córdoba

(Christian) Alfardones », circa 1420, Manises, Spain

(Christian) Azulejos of the 15th century of the Sintra National Palace, Portugal
 

(Christian) Tiles in Alcázar of Segovia

16th century[edit]
Potters from Italy came into Seville in the early 16th century and established workshops
there. They brought with them the maiolica techniques which allowed the artists to
represent a much larger number of figurative themes in their compositions. The first Italian
potter to move into Spain was Francisco Niculoso who settled in Seville in
1498.[9] Examples of his work can still be admired in situ in the Alcazar of Seville. Under the
influence of the Renaissance style introduced by Italians artists, most azulejos were
polychrome tile panels depicting allegorical or mythological scenes, scenes from the lives
of saints or the Bible, or hunting scenes. Mannerism and the grotesque style, with its
bizarre representations, had much influence on azulejos.
Until the mid-16th century the Portuguese continued to rely on foreign imports, mostly from
Spain, such as the Annunciation by Francisco Niculoso in Évora, but also on a smaller
scale from Antwerp (Flanders), such as the two panels by Jan Bogaerts in the Paço
Ducal of Vila Viçosa (Alentejo). One of the early Portuguese masters of the 16th century
was Marçal de Matos, to whom Susanna and the Elders (1565), in Quinta da Bacalhoa,
Azeitão, is attributed, as well as the Adoration of the Shepherds (in the National Museum of
Azulejos in Lisbon). The Miracle of St. Roque (in the Church of S. Roque, Lisbon) is the
first dated Portuguese azulejo composition (1584). It is the work of Francisco de Matos,
probably the nephew and pupil of Marçal de Matos. Both drew their inspiration
from Renaissance and Mannerist paintings and engravings from Italy and Flanders. A fine
collection of 16th-century azulejos (azulejos Hispano-mouriscos) can be found in the
Museu da Rainha D. Leonor in Beja, Portugal (the former Convento da Conceição).
In the late 16th century, checkered azulejos were used as decoration for large surfac