Gondar, Amarante
César Teixeira and his son João are the last artisans of Soenga, the ancestral firing of black clay in Gondar. Over 1000 degrees of fire turn the clay black. A ritual of patience, fire and memory.
Maçainhas, Guarda
Céu Reis saw the craft disappear and refused to let it die. She rescued a handloom over 300 years old and trained a new generation of weavers. Today hers is the only certified team still weaving the true Cobertor de Papa.
Soenga is the traditional firing of Gondar black clay in Amarante, Portugal: pieces are fired in a pit dug in the ground at over 1,000 degrees, then the pit is smothered with pine needles and earth. Without oxygen, the smoke turns the clay black, with no paint or glaze.
Potter César Teixeira and his son João Teixeira, in Gondar, Amarante. Ra-Ro's film presents them as the last soenga artisans. Their pieces are sold at Ra-Ro.
A churra wool blanket hand-woven on a hand loom in Maçainhas, Guarda, Portugal, then fulled and brushed until it carries a long pile. Today only the Associação O Genuíno Cobertor de Papa, led by Céu Reis, makes it as a certified team.
The short film Made of Time, with creative direction by Broto and production by The End, won Best Short Documentary at the Barcelona Filmmakers Festival 2026, at Portugal Indie Film Fest (plus an honourable mention) and at the Finisterra Brazil Film Art & Tourism Festival, and an award at the ART&TUR International Tourism Film Festival.
In the Ra-Ro shop at ra-ro.eu. Every piece carries a Ra-Ro Index rating, from Uncommon to Unique.
The short film "Made of Time", with creative direction by Broto and production by The End for Ra-Ro, follows two of these crafts: the genuine Cobertor de Papa from Maçainhas and César Teixeira's soenga in Gondar.
Creative direction: Broto. Production: The End.The film is also nominated for several other awards.
These awards recognise the stories of our artisans. They show that these stories matter to the world and encourage us to keep giving a voice to a heritage that deserves to be known, valued and preserved.
Short moments from the workshops. In Portuguese, as they were filmed.
Manifesto credits. Video and motion: Hugo Lage. Copywriting: Sara Vitorino. Voiceover: Inês Carvalho. Music: Aurélien Vieira.
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