Olive Tree in Silver | Exceptional Collection

For the production of the play “Oliveira”, representatives of Leitão & Irmão traveled to Tavira, where one of the few thousand-year-old olive trees in Portugal is located.

This trip served as an inspiration for the grandeur and impunity that nature is capable of achieving.

The olive tree is one of the trees that has been cultivated by humans for the longest time.

With its twisted trunk, it can live for thousands of years and its fruit is the olive.

In addition to gastronomy, olives have multiple uses for medicinal, religious and aesthetic purposes.

The olive tree has strong symbolic connotations such as the fact that it regenerates when cut or burned, sprouting from the roots, making it the best representation of perseverance.

It became eternalized in the image of the dove of peace, which carries a branch in its beak, as well as in the crowns of ancient Olympic winners, made from olive shoots. The anointing oil is also extracted from the olive tree, symbolizing healing and divine protection.

A Oliveira é um projeto desenvolvido no âmbito da coleção Excecionais da Leitão & Irmão.

The pieces are part of the commemoration of the House's bicentenary, joining the Rhinocerus 1515, o Elephant Hanno, a Salvador Dali's Giraffe, the Chelas Crocodile and the African Embondeiro, in a set of original works in chiseled silver, depicting incredible stories in which they are the protagonists.

The objective of this creation is to pay homage to a tree which, as an integral part of Portuguese culture, is given a unique symbolism due to its importance in Portuguese cultural history and families.