Coimbra Pottery

Here are a few of my Coimbra pottery pieces. They are made in Portugal, where pottery works date from Moorish control of the Iberian peninsula. The Moorish influence in the painting style is evident. They are all new pieces, bought in places like Tuesday Morning and T. J. Maxx, where they are discounted. Otherwise they are too expensive.

I have 22 pieces so far. They appeal to me because of the elaborate design and variance on a theme you will see on each piece. They are all hand painted and each painter has his or her own style of doing borders, flowers or decorations, although the animal and floral themes are repeated on everyone's work. The back of each piece is signed, so you could possibly only collect one painter's work, for consistency, although I love the riotous color of the mix.

I didn't know a thing about Coimbra pottery when I bought the first piece. It's the round trivet on the bottom shelf in the picture. I bought it because it matched my redecorated kitchen, I loved the colors, and it was on the clearance shelf at T. J. Maxx for $10.00. I thought it was a steal. After that purchase I started reading, and became fascinated.

The patterns and colors appeal to the scrap quilter in me. Others are not so charitable. One minimalist friend pronounced it "gaudy". She also thought my scrap quilts were a little much, too. To each her own.