Azulejo is a Portuguese name of ceramic tiles that most frequently occur in white and blue colors. The name “azulejo” derives from the blue color. Hundreds or even thousands glazed tiles are used for creating mosaics which can decorate facades, but also floors, walls and ceilings inside buildings. Ceramic squares are quite often arranged in exquisite patterns: genre, historic, mythological scenes as well as floral and geometrical compositions. Azulejo are characteristic for the Portuguese art. Their beginning dates back to the 11th century. Since the 19th century azulejo has been used for decorating the external walls of the buildings, which had mostly practical implications: azulejos protected the façades of churches and other public buildings against rains and strong sunshine. The 18th-century Igreja do Carmo Church in Porto built in the Rococo style is the example of the building, the façade of which was covered with white and blue azulejos mosaics.
