The colours of Alentejo

Water reservoir of Vila Viçosa.

Colours of the Alentejo
The color of the buildings is one of the parameters that contributes to the definition of the identity of a place because it reflects the specific cultural values of the territory in which the dwellings are inserted and of the society that inhabited it over time. In this context, historic centers, are, in general, subject to more stringent rules but not always ...
Rigorous construction and maintenance, are important sources of information on materials and pictorial techniques traditionally employed. In Alentejo, the early preference shown by Municipal legislation for the use of lime - in painting exterior elevations and maintaining them - now allows to analyze the pigments that made up the chromatic palette
The urban agglomerations.
In the historic nuclei of the 47 municipalities of the province of Alentejo, spread over the districts of Beja, Évora, Portalegre and Setúbal, there are still many traces of whitewashing and pigmented bars, especially in buildings that are uninhabited or that have been maintained with few means. . From the observation of these buildings, we can see the importance that color has achieved in traditional finishes and we conclude that, contrary to what is suggested by the current stereotyped urban image of Alentejo, the colour keeps as much as possible still limited to the famous ocher and blue bars.