The Olive oil museum is located on a small hill above the ancient roman ruins of Bobadela (Oliveira do Hospital). On its front, the imposing Estrela Mountain, an icon of the Beirão territory.
It was a project centered on a purpose – built edifice in which the recreation of historical contexts highlights the machinery and the techniques devised by humans throughout the centuries to extract olive oil. This precious, even sacred, vegetable oil was, in its multiple applications – food, lighting, medicine and hygiene – one of the most important agricultural products, playing a key role in the economy of each historical period.
Combining historical and heritage enhancement with tourist fruition, this is a space where cultural, industrial and intangible heritage can be preserved, and the technology of olive oil production, focusing on its main processing phases – crushing, pressing and decantation – is illustrated. This is a place where centuries – old objects and expertise that are part of our identity can be preserved.