O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa

Céu Reis was born in Guarda and grew up in the village of Maçainhas, where winters were harsh, but also warm. How? She covered herself with the thick, waterproof traditional wool blankets that were woven on manual, wooden looms by men - the weavers. These were the Papa blankets (cobertores de papa), made with churra sheep wool, brushed with long strokes to confer insulation and resistance. From a young age, Céu learned the rhythms of weaving, not as a career, but as a family routine.

For over two decades, she worked at the former José Freire factory, until it closed in 2013. The iconic blanket then faced extinction, but Céu did not let the story end that way. In 2018, together with 15 other members, she founded the Associação O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa (The Genuine Papa Blanket Association), with the goal of reviving the craft, alongside the same artisans who worked at the factory, on a voluntary basis. She rescued a manual loom about 300 years old (one of the last of its kind in the world), provided training, and committed herself to weaving the thick, old-fashioned blankets by hand every day.

Under her leadership, the association registered the “Cobertor de Papa” trademark, managed to become a benchmark for national and European heritage, received craft awards, references, and honorable mentions, and secured support for the Papachurra project, which links the blanket to endangered sheep breeds and rural sustainability. Today, Céu leads the only certified team that still produces the true, genuine cobertor de papa.