First period

1809-1832

José Ibáñez, the founder's son, with the help of his uncles and his wife, Anita Varela, expanded the original factory by installing three production kilns and building several workshops with more than 25 kilns. Production rose to 20,000 pieces of pottery per year by the early 1930s.

These pottery ware was characterized by its white color, its creamy or slightly bluish glossy glaze, and its neoclassical style inspired by English Bristol pottery. The first hand-painted pieces date from this period.

Second period

1809-1832

In 1835, José Ibáñez partnered with Antonio Tapia to form the company Ibáñez y Tapia. Under the direction of Frenchman M. Richard, they focused on the production of fine hand-painted white earthenware. They also undertook the first attempts at printing and polychromy. Pieces featuring traditional, mythological, and religious motifs are notable from this period.

Third period

1870 - 1875

In 1845, Luis de la Riva y Cía, from Santiago de Compostela, leased the administration of SARGADELOS to the Ibáñez family, beginning the company's first golden age: 1,000 families arrived to work in the factory in 1849.

Under the direction of British designer Edwin Forester, unbeatable quality was achieved in tableware and figurines, adding variety in both design and color, with outstanding monochrome prints and the impregnation of color in the backgrounds of the white and slightly blue tableware pieces.

Fourth era

1870 - 1875 The Samoedo hill fort

In 1873, in association with Atocha and Morodo from A Coruña, the Ibáñez family took over management of Sargadelos. They unsuccessfully attempted to reproduce the quality of the previous era, halting investment in new facilities and dispensing with foreign ceramic experts. The lawsuits caused by the Ibáñez family led to the closure of Sargadelos in 1875.

Despite everything, a century later, in 1972, the perimeter of the old factories was declared a Historic-Artistic Site due to the beauty achieved in its workshops and the rich cultural legacy it had imprinted on the society of the time and on future generations, turning Sargadelos into a true myth with a place reserved for it in the collective memory.

A new era

1949 - 21st century

In 1949, Isaac Díaz Pardo opened a ceramics workshop that soon became the Cerámica do Castro industrial complex. After some time experimenting with new techniques and designs, he decided to reproduce original figures by visual artists using Galician clays, which produced a fine, translucent paste of great hardness and whiteness, giving the porcelain its high quality.

Diaz Pardo's artistic and entrepreneurial interests led him to Argentina, where he met Galician exiles, including the magnificent painter Luis Seoane. Although these experiences were not very lucrative at the time, they served to spark the interest of Galician intellectuals exiled from the Spanish Civil War in the economic and cultural recovery of Galicia, which materialized in 1963 with the creation of the Laboratorio de Formas (Laboratory of Forms).

Sargadelos

Today

Currently, SARGADELOS has two production plants employing more than 150 people. It has 15 exclusive distribution points, seventy home decor stores, and multi-brand jewelry stores in Spain, Asia, and the Americas. Along with its industrial and commercial activities, SARGADELOS carries out important work to disseminate and promote Galician culture, primarily among the youngest talents in the arts and literature.