Seat House Museum

Category: Culture and Entertainment > Museum

District: Porto > Felgueiras > Friande

Location

The Museu Casa do Assento is located in the parish of Friande, belonging to the municipality of Felgueiras. It is situated in a geographical area that has traditionally maintained a strong and deep connection with the rural environment and agricultural activities. Its location reflects this proximity to the reality of country life that the museum seeks to document and preserve.

An Ethnographic Collection

This museological space is dedicated to presenting a vast collection of objects and testimonies that reveal life from other times in the municipality of Felgueiras. The collection is ethnographic in nature, focusing on the material and immaterial aspects of rural daily life. The aim is to protect and disseminate this heritage, ensuring that its stories and significance reach current and future generations.

The Cycles of Rural Life

The museum's permanent exhibition is organized around the cycles of fundamental activities that marked life in the region's rural areas. Visitors can explore the journey of bread, from the soil to the wood-fired oven; learn about the wine production process, from the vineyard to the press; discover the relative simplicity associated with olive oil production and the tools used; and follow the transformation of the flax plant until it becomes fabric. Each thematic core offers a detailed and concrete insight into these ancestral tasks.

History of a House and its Memory

The Museu Casa do Assento has a particular origin. It was born from the initiative and personal collection of Américo Ferreira Leite, who gathered ethnographic objects in his own family home. His wish was for this collection and the space where it was kept to become a public asset. After his passing, the house and collection were donated to the Felgueiras City Council, which took over the management and restructuring of the museum, making it accessible to all who wish to learn about this facet of local history.