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Vendor: O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa

Rarity scale

UNIQUE

Regular price 35,70 €

Long before the age of electric heaters, heated floors, and the globalization of synthetic fibers, shepherds and their families wrapped themselves in layers of natural wool, thickly woven, compact to withstand the cutting cold of the Guarda highlands (Beira Alta, Portugal).

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Production Time

Approximately > 6 weeks

Payment secure

Planner

35,70 €

History Dimensions Conservation

Days wrapped in natural wool.

It was called the Papa Blanket (Cobertor de Papa).

It still is, because the Associação O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa (The Genuine Papa Blanket Association) rescued the tools and the secrets of its manufacture from extinction just a few years ago. Traditional, handcrafted, thick, waterproof, warm, long-haired, woven on a 300-year-old wooden hand loom, the oldest of its kind in the world.

We have Céu Reis to thank. She created the association and its workshop after the last factory in the region where she had worked for 28 years closed. Her brother and friends came to work with her and her mother, Rosa Baía, who never stopped - at 91, her blanket weaving career spans eight decades, ever since she was a child of just 11.

It's a good plan for today, isn't it?

Length > 23 cm
Width > 17 cm
Thickness > 6 cm

Washing
Washing should be done in cold water, with soap.

Laundry Service
It can also be washed at a laundry service.
It is necessary to inform them that the product is 100% wool.

Drying and Storage
Only store after it is completely dry.

Sanitization (Without Washing)
If the planner isn't dirty, it's advisable to place it in the sun for one or two days for sanitization.

Meet the Producer

WOVEN ON A 300-YEAR-OLD HISTORIC LOOM

Maria do Céu Reis founded the association that revived this tradition, working with a certified team to produce blankets in the old-fashioned way.

discover the story

Early Life and Weaving Traditions

Maria do Céu Reis was born in Guarda and raised in the village of Maçainhas, where winters were harsh but, also, warm. How so? She would drape herself in the thick, waterproof, traditional wool blankets her mother and neighbours wove by hand. These were the cobertores de papa, made from the wool of churra sheep, brushed with long strokes for insulation and resilience.

Factory Work and the Craft’s Decline

For over two decades, she worked at the old José Freire factory, until it closed in 2013. The iconic blanket actually went extinct for five years but Maria couldn’t let that be the end of the story.

Revival Through O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa

In 2018, she founded the association O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa to revive the craft with a new generation of weavers and volunteers. She reclaimed a 300 year-old manual loom (the last one standing in the world), trained people, and committed to hand-weaving the thick wool blankets the old way, all day.

Recognition and Legacy

Under her leadership, the association earned EU and national heritage trademarks, and secured support for the Papachurra project, linking the blanket to endangered sheep breeds and rural sustainability. Today, Maria leads the only certified team still making the true Cobertor de Papa.