Vista Alegre Museum

The Vista Alegre porcelain factory at Ílhavo is one of the world’s largest producers of table ware. The factory was built in 1824 beside the Aveiro estuary, close to supplies of china clay, sand and imported coal. It became famous for high-quality design and decoration. The company began its museum collection in 1947, which opened to the public in 1964. In 2014 the museum was refurbished and expanded to include two ovens.

The entrance is in a courtyard of historic factory buildings. The displays are beautifully designed to show the ceramics at their best. They explain the factory’s history in the context of Portuguese society. The large collection includes glasswares, experimental wares from 1824 to 1834. the porcelain manufactured by Vista Alegre from 1835 to the present, design drawings and paintings, photographs of the life of the factory, objects and equipment. Visitors can take a factory tour to see the hand-painting workshops. They can also visit the factory village developed from 1824 with its housing, theatre, and school.