veredes, arquitectura y divulgación VADo2 Los Prototipos | Page 96
VAD. 02 | Diciembre 2019 | ISSN 2659-9139 e-ISSN 2659-9198
ISSN 2659-9139 e-ISSN 2659-9198 | Diciembre 2019 | 02.VAD
The origins of the “Leões” flour and
pasta factory. The present of the Arts
and Architecture School of the
University of Évora (Portugal)
Los orígenes de la fábrica de harina y pasta “Leões”. El presente
de la Escuela de Arte y Arquitectura de la Universidad de Évora
Ana Cardoso de Matos | Sheila Palomares A. | Armando Quintas
Abstract
Recibido: 2019.05.31
Aceptado: 2019.06.13
Ana Cardoso de Matos
Universidade de Évora
[email protected]
Profesora Associada com agregação
do Departamento de História da
Universidade de Évora, vice-diretora
do Instituto de Investigação e For-
mação Avançada e investigadora do
CIDEHUS-Centro interdisciplinar de
História, Culturas e Sociedades.
Sheila Palomares Alarcón
Universidade de Évora
[email protected]
Dra. Arquiteta. HERITAS–FCT–PhD–
Estudos de Património. Investiga-
dora–Miembro integrado de CIDE-
HUS-Universidad de Évora. Premio
de investigación “Cronista Alfredo
Cazabán 2018”.
Armando Quintas
Universidade de Évora
[email protected]
Doutorando em História na Univer-
sidade de Évora, mestre em Gestão
do Património Industrial-programa
Erasmus Mundus TPTI (tripla titulação:
Universidade de Paris I, Universidade
de Évora e Universidade de Pádua),
licenciado em História Património
Cultural pela Universidade de Évora.
Acknowledgement
This work is funded by national funds
through the Foundation for Science
and Technology, under the project
CIDEHUS-UID/HIS/00057/2019 and
HERITAS [PhD]-Heritage Studies [Ref.
PD/00297/2013]. Sheila Palomares Alar-
cón. Ref. PD/BD/135142/2017.Armando
Quintas. Ref. PD/BD/135143/2017.
96
The Leões flour and pasta factory, which was one of the most important
factories of the Alentejo, is a typical example of the European milling fac-
tories which emerged in 19th-century Europe. It was one of the 31 modern
factories built in the districts of Beja, Évora and Portalegre between the late
19th century and the 1930s. It was established in 1916 in Évora. In 1993, the
factory’s lack of competitiveness led to its closure and, after a few years
of neglect, in 1998, the University of Évora, following the example of other
universities, acquired the building so it would accommodate the Arts and
Architecture School.
The search of the origins of the factory was one of the main objectives
of the researchers who were working about this field. However, it was not
available the original process of the industry which would help to exami-
ne this study case completely, still now. In this paper we intend to analyse
firstly, the origins of the Leões factory and its technical and architectural
characteristics, and secondly, the renovation of the building as the Arts and
Architecture School of the University of Évora.
Key words: Leões flour and pasta factory; Évora (Portugal); industrial herita-
ge; adaptive reuse.
Resumen
La fábrica de harina y pasta Leões, que fue una de las empresas más im-
portantes del Alentejo, es un ejemplo típico de las fábricas de molienda
europeas que surgieron en la Europa del siglo XIX. Fue una de las 31 fábri-
cas modernas construidas en los distritos de Beja, Évora y Portalegre entre
finales del siglo XIX y la década de 1930. Fue construida en 1916 en Évora.
En 1993, la falta de competitividad de la fábrica llevó a su cierre y, después
de algunos años de abandono, en 1998, la Universidad de Évora, siguiendo
el ejemplo de otras universidades, adquirió el edificio para que pudiera al-
bergar la Escuela de Arte y Arquitectura.
La búsqueda de los orígenes de la fábrica ha sido uno de los principales
objetivos de los investigadores que trabajaban en este campo. Sin embar-
go, todavía no estaba disponible el material que ayudase a examinar este
caso de estudio por completo. En este artículo pretendemos analizar en
primer lugar, los orígenes de la fábrica de Leões y sus características téc-
nicas y arquitectónicas, y en segundo lugar, la renovación del edificio como
la Escuela de Artes y Arquitectura de la Universidad de Évora.
Palabras clave: Leões flour and pasta factory; Évora (Portugal); Patrimonio
Industrial; Rehabilitación.
ANA CARDOSO DE MATOS | SHEILA PALOMARES ALARCÓN | ARMANDO QUINTAS. The origins of the “Leões” flour and pasta factory [...] pp. 96-106
The Leões factory: New research findings about its origin 1
There have been published a rage number of articles 2 or book chapter
about the Leões factory since it was bought by the University of Évora in
1998. The flour mill, which was one of the most important factories of
the Alentejo, entailed, on the one hand, a significant transformation of
the landscape and, on the other hand, the emergence of flour mill plants
which introduced the Austro-Hungarian system.
Leões was more than an industrial complex. It had a commanding presen-
ce in the skyline of the city. It built a new neighbourhood around it outsi-
de the city wall where lived the people who worked there. It was such a
strong symbol for the inhabitants of the city that nowadays it is still called
Leões when you want to talk about the arts and Architecture School of the
University of Évora.
The search of the origins of the factory was one of the main objectives of
the researchers who were working about this field. However, there were
just a few bibliography, old photos (really important to know the appea-
rance inside and outside the building), historical publications… but there
was not the original process of the industry which would help to analyse
this file, still now.
The Leões flour and pasta factory was established in 1916 in Évora by So-
ciedade Alentejana de Moagens, a capitalist enterprise founded by several
agriculture entrepreneurs from the city with the purpose of diversifying
their businesses by taking advantage of the cereal regime 3 . It integrated
the most modern industrial park that existed in the region at the time 4
and it was installed closed to the wall of the city 5 and to the railway line 6 .
In 1920, Eugénio Alvarez took the control of the factory. He promoted
the capital of Leões to 800 contos (800.000$00 escudos) and betting on
the modernization with recourse to technology from countries such as
Switzerland 7 .
Although we have the original process of the industry, it has no infor-
mation about the design of original factory. The original documentation 8
reports the characteristics of the factory since 1923: on May 17 th an appli-
cation authorization was entered to the services of the 4th Industrial Dis-
trict. It was requested the license to build a bakery 9 and a flour division in
the Leões factory.
The designers of the project were Durán, Garcia & Cª Engenheiros, from
Lisbon, was a specialised business in the study and execution of power
stations, hydraulic plants, flour and past factories; mechanical bakeries,
chocolatefactories, sweet shops and biscuits factories, etc. 10
As we can see in the figure 1, it was not just a building, it was planned
as an industrial complex compounded by: flour mill, silos, warehouse, oil
engine house, house repair, pasta factory, bakery, garage, a water tank
to cool the engine and the bakery workers houses which were situated in
the other side of the factory buildings.
The primitive building was the flour mill and the warehouse.
1 Before finding the original process
of the industry, this article impro-
ves and disseminates our last re-
search findings. A previous version
in Spanish was: Matos, Quintas,
Palomares, “La rehabilitación de la
fábrica de massas Leões...”, 2017.
2 Guimarães, Elites e Indústria
no Alentejo (1890-1960), 2006;
Portugal, O libro dos Leões, 2008;
Palomares, “Pan y aceite...”, 2016;
Matos, Quintas, Palomares, “La re-
habilitación de la fábrica de massas
Leões...”, 2017.
3 At the end of the 19th century,
Portugal, as well as other Euro-
pean countries, implemented a
protectionist policy aimed at both
raising custom duties and protec-
ting grain crops, especially wheat.
This grain protectionism began
to emerge in the 1880s, marking
a transition from a free market to
a more closed one. The measures
implemented over the preceding
ten years, focusing especially on
the role played by the flour mill
plants, establishing that, before
purchasing the more precious
and lucrative exotic wheat, they
first had to buy domestic wheat in
nearly double the proportion. This
measure ensured the flow of Portu-
guese wheat, reducing imports, and
thus balancing the trade balance.
All these developments allowed
Alentejo to become one of the top
cereal-producing regions thanks to
its extensive territory, which was
characterised by a predominance
of large estates and whose poten-
tial was still mostly untapped. Reis
“A ‘Lei da Fome’: as origens do pro-
teccionismo cerealífero..”, 745-793.
4 In the region, this incorporation of
a public limited company by major
landholders was not an exception,
but rather quite usual, as there
was a number of other companies
that were incorporated at the time,
such as Companhia Elvense de
Moagens a Vapor, founded in Elvas,
in 1889, Sociedade de Moinhos de
Santa Iria, founded in Beja, in 1890,
or Sociedade Fabril Alentejana
Limitada, founded in Vila Viçosa,
in 1921, to mention just a few.
Guimarães, Elites e Indústria no
Alentejo (1890-1960), 99,100, 178;
Quintas, “A fábrica e a sociedade
Sofal de...”, 221-245.
ANA CARDOSO DE MATOS | SHEILA PALOMARES ALARCÓN | ARMANDO QUINTAS. The origins of the “Leões” flour and pasta factory [...] pp. 94-106
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