The Eccentric Azulejo (Tile) Museum in Lisbon

Museum of the Month is a series where I share my experiences of visiting unique and often strange museums from around the world. My aim is to rebuff the notion that museums are boring!

Inside Lisbon's Tile Museum

I know what you’re probably thinking… how can there be a whole museum dedicated to tiles? Isn’t it the case that if you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all?

Oh, on the contrary, my dear.

After seeing the Tile Museum crop up on Trip Advisor as one of Lisbon’s hidden gems, I knew I had to go for myself.

While ‘Tile Museum’ isn’t exactly the type of thing you hear about which instantly makes you want drop everything you’re doing, you’ll have to trust me when I say it’s worth visiting.

Tiled buildings in Lisbon, Portugal

Why you should visit

Although the idea of a Tile Museum might sound like an odd and incredibly niche museum to have in any city, it makes perfect sense in Lisbon.

This is because (and as you might already know) many of the buildings in Lisbon are decorated with exquisitely colourful and intricate tiles which are also known as azulejos.

Some of these azulejos are so beautiful someone had the brilliant idea of creating a museum dedicated to them.

One of the special things about visiting the Azulejo Museum is that it’s the only one of its kind in the world, furthermore unravelling 500 years of Portuguese history and craftsmanship.

Tiled buildings in Lisbon

A brief history of azulejos in Portugal

Moorish Influence (8th to 15th centuries)

The origins of azulejos can be traced back to the Moorish period when Islamic influence was prominent in the Iberian Peninsula. During this time, decorative tilework adorned various structures, especially in palaces and mosques. The term “azulejo” itself is derived from the Arabic word “al zuleycha,” meaning “polished stone.”

Transition to Portugal (15th century)

With the Reconquista in the 12th to 15th centuries, Portugal gradually reclaimed territory from the Moors. As this transition occurred, the use of azulejos in Portugal evolved. The tiles became more prominent in both religious and secular buildings, featuring geometric patterns and stylized motifs inspired by Islamic design.

Renaissance Influence (16th century)

During the Renaissance, Portugal experienced a flourishing artistic and architectural period. Azulejos became more intricate and began to depict narrative scenes, often influenced by Italian Renaissance art. This period marked the integration of azulejos into the design of churches, monasteries, and noble residences.

Blue and White Tradition (17th century)

The 17th century saw a shift towards the distinctive blue and white tiles that are now synonymous with Portuguese azulejos. The use of blue pigment, influenced by Chinese porcelain, became popular, and scenes from everyday life, historical events, and mythological themes were depicted on tiles.

Exploring inside The Azulejo Museum

Azulejo, the tile museum in Lisbon

Beautifully housed inside an old convent, the premise alone is reason to visit. Any visitor to this museum could easily spend 2-3 hours exploring the building, and a lot longer depending on how far your interest stretches.

There are three main areas to the museum:

1: The tile cafe
2: The church and weird chapel/shrine
3: The exhibition rooms

The Tile Cafe

The café is a lovely place to sit down and relax after hours of sightseeing. As you might expect, there are lots of pretty tiles relating to food and cooking which I couldn’t stop swooning over.

When I was sitting down sipping my hot chocolate I was thinking about how nice it would be to own a kitchen filled the same tiles. I know for certain it would encourage me to cook more!

Clara and I sat down for a while in the café before walking around the museum but equally, it would be a nice place to finish up.

Azulejo, Tile Museum in Lisbon

Tile Cafe in Lisbon

Exploring the Church

The baroque style church is a visual feast of lavish gilt, fresco and tiles depicting the life of the Virgin and Christ. And not to be out-done is the chapel on the 1st floor which contains some very peculiar shrines. As you can imagine, seeing all the gold and elaborate woodwork was quite a shock after wandering around the simple rooms of the convent.

Church in Tile Museum, Lisbon

Shrine in the Tile Museum in Lisbon

Shrine in museu Azulejo, Lisbon

Tile Museum

The Permanent Collection

You’ll find lots of rooms paying homage to azulejos but the most famous can be found on the second floor. It contains a huge panoramic panel beautifully capturing the city before the earthquake struck in 1755. The display also highlights prominent features of the city which can act as a handy overview if you’re still unsure of where to go and see next.

The rest of the room has been left quite bare, and since it’s not located in the original convent to benefit from the interesting and original architecture, I didn’t wait around once I viewed the panoramic panel.

Tile panoramic of Lisbon

Tiles in Lisbon, Museum

As well as learning about the history of azulejos, I learnt how they are created and the techniques and materials used. It was really interesting to see how their styles and fashions changed over different periods. I especially loved the tiles which depicted specific scenes, such as a young boy getting an injection in his bottom – ouch!

I hunted for more tiles in the same vein but I had no luck.

Tiles Museum in Lisbon, Portugal

However, there were still lots of funny ones….

Azulejo, tile museum in Lisbon

Museu Azulejo, Tile Museum in Lisbon

Tile Museum in Lisbon

And some incredibly pretty ones…

National Museum of Azulejos, Lisbon

Azulejo Museum, Lisbon

If you were to ask me my favourite part of the museum, I would probably say I enjoyed looking at the contemporary blue and white tiles the most. I like what they symbolise, these tiles clearly demonstrate that the azulejo tradition is very much being kept alive, and that’s certainly something to celebrate!

The tile museum in Lisbon

Inside the Tile Museum in Lisbon

The Tile Museum in Lisbon

Tiles, Azulejo Museum in Lisbon

General Information about the Tile Museum in Lisbon

How to get there: It’s slightly out of the centre so the easiest way to get there is by catching either the 759 or 794 bus from central. The nearest train station is Santa Apolonia which would take approximately 20 minutes to walk.
Admission Fee: Adult 5 Euros, children: Free
Opening Times: 2-6pm Tue, 10am-6pm Wed-Sun
Website: www.museudoazulejo.pt

Are you planning a trip to the National Tile Museum in Lisbon?

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Hi, I'm Shing

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18 Responses

  1. How is it I spent a week in Lisbon admiring all the tile buildings and yet missed out on this fab museum?! A hidden gem indeed! Did you go to the Coach Museum out near Belem? That one may have been my favorite. And I totally agree that museums are anything but boring! 🙂

    1. Hi Heather! Oh a week in Lisbon must have been bliss! But now you have another reason to return 😉 Yes, I went to the Coach Museum too – now that is niche, as well as being extremely decadent! I’m sure it deserves to feature in Museum of the Month at some point!

      1. I nearly did not bother with the coach museum as in my experiences coaches were noisy smelly means of transport when I was young. Fortunately I made the connection on looking through a guide. What a fascinating and rich exhibition! surely it is unique, a fascinating insight into the transport of the rich in yesteryear. A must see!

  2. Such an interesting entry! The tiles decorations were always an integral part of southern romance countries architecture for me but I never really paid more attention to it and now I know more about them 🙂 In fact arabian influence on the Iberian Peninsula is very strong, especially in the southern Spain which was left by Moors no sooner than the very end of 15th century, and I really hope to explore this part of Europe properly one day.

    And they look like perfect kitchen decoration indeed, I have to keep that in mind 😉

    1. It’s amazing how tiles can reveal so much about history in relation to invasions, influences, and aesthetics! I didn’t know the Moors reigned over Portugal and Spain for so long until I went to the museum, and its fascinating to see how their influence can be evidenced on the buildings after hundreds of years. I hope to explore this part of Europe further too Ola.

  3. Thanks for this timely post. I arrive in Lisbon on 30 April to commence walking the camino de Santiago de Compostela, and this museum was already on my list of things to do. It has now been pushed to the top of the list. I shall be posting from the camino – all 615 km! Maggie

    1. Wow, good luck with your pilgrim Maggie! I would love to know how long you have planned to do all 615 km?! Also, enjoy Lisbon and the Tile Museum, I’m happy to see it’s been pushed further up your list 😉

  4. We’ve had a couple of trips to Lisbon from our apartment in Tavira. I must say that the Tile Museum was my favourite place of all that we visited. Such a surprise, especially the church/chapel inside. I love the azulejos in Tavira and have taken photographs of most of those I have spotted there. I was in azulejo heaven in Lisbon <3

    1. Hi Pat, it must be lovely to have an apartment in Tavira, what a beautiful place to have a relaxing getaway! I’m pleased to read that you loved the Tile Museum too, it’s great confirmation for anyone else reading this and debating whether or not to go!

      I bet you have some fantastic azulejo photos – feel free to share them with me. And yes… Lisbon is ‘azulejo heaven’ haha!

  5. I am flying to Lisbon in less than 3 months where I will be spending a few days with my mom. She is a history teacher and lover of museums, local churches and art galleries. I will definitely take her there and she will be over the moon. Thanks sweetie for sharing. One question – any cool places not to miss when in Lisbon and did you do a food tour? Thanks for your help :-).

    1. How exciting Agness! You’re going to love Lisbon, and if your mum is a history teacher and all round lover of museums, galleries and churches then she’s going to be in her mecca! I’m afraid I didn’t do a food tour, but the food is exceptionally tasty in Lisbon so I can imagine you’ll be in for a treat if you do!

      You definitely can’t miss going to belem with your mum, it’s very historic with many beautiful buildings and monuments including Jerónimos Monastery which is on UNESCO’s World Hertiage list. In Belem you also can’t miss Berardo Museum of Modern Art – it’s truly exceptional.

      If you’re looking for something quirkier than head inside the Coaches Museum (also in Belem located just before the Monastery) or the Tile Museum.

      My favourite area of central Lisbon was the medieval quarter of Alfama where you’ll discover lots of winding cobbled streets and alleyways filled with intricate tiles. If you walk up the hill you’ll get a stunning panoramic view of the city too. In contrast is Baixa which has really wide streets and big squares with huge monuments such as Praca do Comerico (a definite Must-Do!).

      Sintra is of course not to be missed, but there’s so much to see that I advise choosing what you want to see beforehand to avoid missing out if you loose track of time. I would definitely recommend Pena National Palace and Quinta da Regaleira.

      Lastly, stroll along the waterfront and enjoy, looking forwarding to reading your posts already!

      1. Great tips!
        You’re a star! Thank you sweetheart. I’ll definitely visit Belem and we’re going for a food tour as well :).

  6. I loved it, it was an amazing place full of all sorts of beautiful tiles.
    I hear that some old fallen tiles are being sold at a high price…
    I got dizzy looking at so many beautiful old tiles at the Azulejo Museum. Too bad that the ones sold for travelers as “souvenirs” are so much more simpler… to say it mildly.

    1. what a great place. I thought it would take a few minutes but it took hours. I became quite dizzy with so many beautiful objects. In my experience this is unique and shows tiles to be a great art form Te museum is very accessible for wheelchair users by the way having lifts and plenty of ramps.

  7. Shing

    Came across your web page when researching Lisbon tiles and I have taken the liberty of adding your page as a link to our web page http://www.tbeartravels.com I hope you don’t mind. The link will appear under our post Lisbon Part 2.

    Yes the tile museum is a one off when it comes to museums, especially for us as we have been involved with ceramics including the making of tiles for the past thirty five years.

    Thanks for the informative post.

    Fred and Bev Australia.

    1. Hi Fred and Bev, I loved reading your post and looking at all your photos, very detailed! Thank you for including my post in your blog.

  8. My daughter has just gone to Lisbon and I told her that my favourite was the tile museum, the history and story of tiles is way more fascinating than people would expect. Will send her your link. Also the tea and chocolate cake in the beautiful cafe courtyard made it a perfect visit!

    1. Hi Fiona, sorry for the delay! I’m very happy you passed on this information to your daughter – did she tell you if she enjoyed it as much as we did?! 🙂

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