The Wool Museum, like the University of the Inner Beira to which it belongs, is located in one of the city's most imposing buildings. It was formerly the Royal Cloth Factory.
The building was commissioned in 1769 during the reign of King Dom José I, whose coat of arms can be seen on the façade. Part of the dye-works, where you can still see the furnaces and the cylindrical pits for dyeing the wool, was the space chosen for providing an authentic illustration of the history of Covilhã's wool industry.
The exhibition is organised into three sections: the Pombaline Dye-Works of the Royal Cloth Factory, the wool industry in the Covilhã Region in the 19th and 20th centuries and the Woollen Cloths.
To gain a thorough understanding of the importance of this industry for the city and of its impact on the local way of life, it is essential to visit the Wool Museum. |