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Caldas da Rainha
- spa fit for a queen
Caldas da Rainha on the Silver Coast is famous for two things - the thermal springs that have brought people to the town for centuries and its ceramics which have inspired a tradition of art and culture.
It is a busy market town with some charming areas - a beautiful and spacious park with towering plane trees and a tranquil boating lake; a vibrant and colourful daily fruit and vegetable market; and a pedestrianised shopping district lined with cafés and traditional family-owned shops.
The name of Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro is seen all over Caldas da Rainha in street names, museums, urban developments and displays of local crafts. It is the name of a prodigiously creative man who was born as Rafael Augusto Prostes Bordalo Pinheiro in the middle of the 19th century.
His output was formidable. He was the founder of the ceramic industry in Caldas da Rainha, the pioneer of billboard art in Portugal, a designer, artist, illustrator, political cartoonist and journalist.
Figurines
Pinheiro created the character of Zé Povinho, the pugnacious bearded caricature that dominates ceramic souvenir stalls and has become a nationally recognised symbol in the pantheon of Portuguese cultural figures.
He was born into a privileged artistic family in which he was able to explore his appreciation of the arts and develop his talents. After enrolling and giving up on various courses in civil architecture, dramatic arts, literature and design he found his way to the theatre where he premičred in a production at the Teatro Garrett, after which he gave up acting as a career.
Exhibition
In 1863 his father found him a place in the Câmara dos Pares, Portugal’s equivalent of the House of Lords, and his career prospects improved. Five years later he held his first exhibition of eight watercolours which was well received and in 1871 he won a prize at Madrid’s International Expo.
His output was formidable. He was the founder of the ceramic industry in Caldas da Rainha, the pioneer of billboard art in Portugal, a designer, artist, illustrator, political cartoonist and journalist.
Figurines
Pinheiro created the character of Zé Povinho, the pugnacious bearded caricature that dominates ceramic souvenir stalls and has become a nationally recognised symbol in the pantheon of Portuguese cultural figures.
He was born into a privileged artistic family in which he was able to explore his appreciation of the arts and develop his talents. After enrolling and giving up on various courses in civil architecture, dramatic arts, literature and design he found his way to the theatre where he premičred in a production at the Teatro Garrett, after which he gave up acting as a career.
Exhibition
In 1863 his father found him a place in the Câmara dos Pares, Portugal’s equivalent of the House of Lords, and his career prospects improved. Five years later he held his first exhibition of eight watercolours which was well received and in 1871 he won a prize at Madrid’s International Expo.
Master of ceramics
Royal therapy
The thermal springs are renowned for having therapeutic qualities and have been tapped by the city's thermal hospital which was founded over 500 years ago and is one of the oldest institutions of its type in the world.
The hospital was established by Queen Leonor, who in the 15th century is said to have discovered the hot springs while en-route from her castle in Óbidos to Batalha. The story goes that she found a group of peasants bathing in foul-smelling waters at the roadside and stopped to ask what they were doing.
The thermal springs are renowned for having therapeutic qualities and have been tapped by the city's thermal hospital which was founded over 500 years ago and is one of the oldest institutions of its type in the world.
The hospital was established by Queen Leonor, who in the 15th century is said to have discovered the hot springs while en-route from her castle in Óbidos to Batalha. The story goes that she found a group of peasants bathing in foul-smelling waters at the roadside and stopped to ask what they were doing.
She was told the waters possessed curative powers and decided to try them for herself to see if they would cure a persistent ailment.
The results impressed her so much she ordered a thermal hospital to be built so that others could enjoy the same relief. Construction began the following year in 1485 and a settlement grew around the site, one that eventually became the city of Caldas da Rainha.
Art and culture
Caldas da Rainha is also distinguished by its strong arts tradition, which was boosted in the late 1800s when Bordalo Pinheiro (see sidebar) came to
The results impressed her so much she ordered a thermal hospital to be built so that others could enjoy the same relief. Construction began the following year in 1485 and a settlement grew around the site, one that eventually became the city of Caldas da Rainha.
Art and culture
Caldas da Rainha is also distinguished by its strong arts tradition, which was boosted in the late 1800s when Bordalo Pinheiro (see sidebar) came to
the town to establish a ceramics factory which would become famous the world over for its unique designs. A major ceramics industry grew up around the factory and helped establish Caldas da Rainha as one of Portugal's cultural centres.
Many arts related institutions have made their home in Caldas da Rainha. There are numerous museums in the city, mostly related to ceramics and sculpture, and it has a major arts and design school as well as a school of ceramics. In 2008 the Caldas da Rainha city council inaugurated a new cultural center which has a year-round programme of music, theatre and dance.
Many arts related institutions have made their home in Caldas da Rainha. There are numerous museums in the city, mostly related to ceramics and sculpture, and it has a major arts and design school as well as a school of ceramics. In 2008 the Caldas da Rainha city council inaugurated a new cultural center which has a year-round programme of music, theatre and dance.
Four years later he came up with Zé Povinho, published as an illustration in A Lanterna Mágica, and then left for Brazil where he spent the next four years writing social gossip for newspapers there and in Portugal. On his return to Portugal he became known as a keen satirist of the ruling classes.
Ceramics
Pinheiro’s finest hour came when he was invited to lead the founding of the country’s ceramics industry in Caldas da Rainha with the creation of the Fábrica das Faianças das Caldas da Rainha. His signature designs are the green cabbage leaf bowls and various representations of plant and animal life which dominate displays in Caldas da Rainha's local craft shops.
Ceramics
Pinheiro’s finest hour came when he was invited to lead the founding of the country’s ceramics industry in Caldas da Rainha with the creation of the Fábrica das Faianças das Caldas da Rainha. His signature designs are the green cabbage leaf bowls and various representations of plant and animal life which dominate displays in Caldas da Rainha's local craft shops.
