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Ouro Preto | |
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Municipality of Ouro Preto | |
Motto(s): Proetiosum aurum nigrum (Precious black gold) | |
Coordinates: 20°23′07″S43°30′13″W / 20.38528°S 43.50361°W | |
Country | Brazil |
State | Minas Gerais |
Region | Southeast |
Intermediate Region | Belo Horizonte |
Immediate Region | Santa Bárbara-Ouro Preto |
Founded | 8 July 1711 |
Government | |
• Mayor | Ângelo Oswaldo de Araújo Santos (PV) |
Area | |
• Total | 1,245.865 km2 (481.031 sq mi) |
Elevation | 1,150 m (3,770 ft) |
Population (2020) [3] | |
• Total | 74,558 |
• Density | 60/km2 (150/sq mi) |
Demonym | ouro-pretano |
Time zone | UTC−3 (BRT) |
HDI (2010) | 0.741 – high [4] |
Website | ouropreto |
Official name | Historic Town of Ouro Preto |
Type | Cultural |
Criteria | i, iii |
Designated | 1980 (4th session) |
Reference no. | 124 |
Region | South America |
Ouro Preto (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈo(w)ɾuˈpɾetu] , lit. 'Black Gold'), formerly Vila Rica (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈvilɐˈʁikɐ] , lit. 'Rich Village'), is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Minas Gerais. The city, a former colonial mining town located in the Serra do Espinhaço mountains, was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO due to its Baroque colonial architecture. Ouro Preto used to be the capital of Minas Gerais from 1720 until the foundation of Belo Horizonte in 1897.
The municipality became one of the most populous cities of Latin America, counting on about 40,000 people in 1730 and, decades after, 80,000. At that time, the population of New York was less than half of that number of inhabitants and the population of São Paulo did not surpass 8,000. [5] Officially, 800 tons of gold were sent to Portugal in the eighteenth century, not to mention what was circulated in an illegal manner, nor what remained in the colony, such as gold used in the ornamentation of the churches. [6]
Other historical cities in Minas Gerais are São João del-Rei, Diamantina, Mariana, Tiradentes, Congonhas and Sabará.
Founded at the end of the 17th century, Ouro Preto (meaning Black Gold) was originally called Vila Rica, or "Rich Village", the focal point of the gold rush and Brazil's golden age in the 18th century under Portuguese rule. Between 1695 and 1696, a gold-bearing stream was discovered in Itacolomi, which would be renamed Gualacho do Sul. In 1711, several small settlements were united as a municipality called Villa Rica, which later came to be called Ouro Preto. This name was adopted on 20 May 1823, when the former Vila Rica was elevated from village to city. The name "Black Gold" comes from the gold covered with a layer of iron oxide that is found in the city. [7]
The city centre contains well-preserved Portuguese colonial architecture, with few signs of modern urban development. New construction must keep with the city's historical aesthetic. 18th- and 19th-century churches decorated with gold and the sculptured works of Aleijadinho make Ouro Preto a tourist destination.
The tremendous wealth from gold mining in the 18th century created a city which attracted the intelligentsia of Europe. Philosophy and art flourished, and evidence of a baroque revival called the "Barroco Mineiro" is illustrated in architecture as well as by sculptors such as Aleijadinho, painters such as Manoel da Costa Ataíde, composers such as Lobo de Mesquita, and poets such as Tomás António Gonzaga. At that time, Vila Rica was the largest city in Brazil, with 100,000 inhabitants. [8]
In 1789, Ouro Preto became the birthplace of the Inconfidência Mineira, a failed attempt to gain independence from Portugal. The leading figure, Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, known as Tiradentes, was hanged as a threat to any future revolutionaries.
In 1876, the Escola de Minas (Mines School) was created. This school established the technological foundation for several of the mineral discoveries in Brazil.
Ouro Preto was the capital of Minas Gerais from 1720 until 1897, when the needs of government outgrew this town in the valley. The state government was moved to the new, planned city of Belo Horizonte.
Population: Data from the 2010 Census (IBGE)
The city is linked by unlit winding roads to highways for:
Bordering municipalities are:
Located at 1,179 m (3,868 ft) above sea level, Ouro Preto has a subtropical highland climate (Cwb, according to the Köppen climate classification), with warm and humid summers and mild, dry winters. Frost is occasional and occur in June and July. There is a report of snow in the city in the year of 1843. [9]
Climate data for Ouro Preto, Brazil | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 26.0 (78.8) | 26.1 (79.0) | 25.3 (77.5) | 24.0 (75.2) | 22.5 (72.5) | 21.6 (70.9) | 21.3 (70.3) | 23.0 (73.4) | 24.0 (75.2) | 24.2 (75.6) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.6 (76.3) | 23.9 (75.1) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 15.6 (60.1) | 15.5 (59.9) | 14.0 (57.2) | 13.4 (56.1) | 10.9 (51.6) | 9.1 (48.4) | 8.3 (46.9) | 9.5 (49.1) | 12.0 (53.6) | 13.7 (56.7) | 14.7 (58.5) | 15.2 (59.4) | 12.7 (54.8) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 283 (11.1) | 208 (8.2) | 175 (6.9) | 82 (3.2) | 29 (1.1) | 17 (0.7) | 15 (0.6) | 24 (0.9) | 57 (2.2) | 115 (4.5) | 223 (8.8) | 324 (12.8) | 1,552 (61) |
Source: Climatedata.org. [10] |
Although Ouro Preto now relies heavily on the tourism industry for part of its economy, there are important metallurgic and mining industries located in town, such as Novelis, formerly Alcan, the most important aluminum factory in the country, Vale S.A., and others. Main economic activities are tourism, transformation industries, and mineral riches such as deposits of iron, bauxite, manganese, talc and marble.
Minerals of note in the city are: gold, hematite, dolomite, tourmaline, pyrite, muscovite, topaz and imperial topaz, which is a stone only found in Ouro Preto.
Soapstone handicraft items are a common souvenir among tourists, and can be found in many shops in the city's town centre and street fairs.[ citation needed ] Jewelry made of local precious and semi-precious gemstones (such as hematite) can also be found for sale.[ citation needed ]
Ouro Preto is also a university town with an intense student life. The Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto (Federal University of Ouro Preto or UFOP) has approximately 10,000 students in the city. Many of them live in communal houses that are somewhat similar to fraternity houses as found in North American colleges. These communal or shared houses are called repúblicas, 66 of which are owned by the university, called repúblicas federais, and 250 are privately owned (repúblicas particulares).
The repúblicas system of Ouro Preto is unique in Brazil. No other university city in the country has exactly the same characteristics of the student lodgings found there. It shares traits with the repúblicas of the Portuguese University of Coimbra, where the tradition originated. Before universities were founded in Brazil, Coimbra was where most of the rich students who could afford an overseas education went to. Each república has its own different history. There are repúblicas in which the freshmen, also known as "bixos" (misspelling of "bichos", Portuguese for "animals"), have to undergo a hazing period, called batalha (battle), before being accepted permanently as residents of the houses. The final choice of the freshmen, called escolha, has to be unanimous among the senior students of the house. [11]
The Museu Mineralógico da Escola de Minas (Mineralogy Museum) can be of special interest to visitors. It belongs to the UFOP's School of Mining, which opened its doors on 12 October 1876. The museum is located at the Tiradentes Square No. 20, in the town's historical center, and contains a rich assortment of minerals on display, including precious and semi-precious gemstones and large crystals. Security is tight, however (for example, no cameras are allowed), due to the incalculable value of the gemstones and ores on display.
Ouro Preto is a major tourist destination, for its well-preserved colonial appearance with baroque architecture and cobblestone streets.
The city contains numerous churches, many known for their religious art and baroque architecture. Some of the best known are:
A number of former gold mines in the city offer tours to tourists. One of the most well known is the Mina do Chico Rei, near the sanctuary of Nossa Senhora da Conceição. Another infamous mine is the Mina da passagem. In the early 19th century, Portugal gave the United Kingdom exclusive use of this mine for 100 years to pay Portugal's sovereign debts. This is the world's largest mine open to the public. [12] The municipality contains about 10% of the 31,270 hectares (77,300 acres) Serra do Gandarela National Park, created in 2014. [13]
The street carnival in Ouro Preto attracts thousands of people every year. Carnival blocks are the most traditional type of parade, where bands play across the town, followed by herds of paraders dressed up in costumes. The block Zé Pereira dos Lacaios, founded in 1867, is the oldest block that is still active in Brazil. [14] [15] Parades with samba schools also happen.
The street party is also celebrated in neighbouring towns such as Mariana.
Ouro Preto was a setting in the comedy movie Moon over Parador (1988), with actors Richard Dreyfuss and Sonia Braga.
Mining is Brazil's sixth largest industry.
Minas Gerais is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 census. Located in the Southeast Region of the country, it is limited to south and southwest with São Paulo; Mato Grosso do Sul to the west; Goiás and the Federal District to the northwest; Bahia to the north and northeast; Espírito Santo to the east; and Rio de Janeiro to the southeast. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte, is a major urban and finance center in Brazil, being the sixth most populous municipality in the country while its metropolitan area ranks as the third largest in Brazil with just over 5.8 million inhabitants, after those of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Minas Gerais' territory is subdivided into 853 municipalities, the largest number among Brazilian states.
Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, known as Tiradentes, was a leading member of the colonial Brazilian revolutionary movement known as the Inconfidência Mineira, whose aim was full independence from Portuguese rule and the creation of a republic. When the conspirators plot was uncovered by authorities, Tiradentes was arrested, tried and publicly hanged.
Antônio Francisco Lisboa, better known as Aleijadinho, was a sculptor, carver and architect of Colonial Brazil, noted for his works on and in various churches of Brazil. With a style related to Baroque and Rococo, Aleijadinho is considered almost by consensus as the greatest exponent of colonial art in Brazil by Brazilian critics and, surpassing Brazilian borders, for some foreign scholars he is the greatest name of Baroque in the Americas.
Diamantina is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Minas Gerais. Its estimated population in 2020 was 47,825 in a total area of 3,870 km2.
João Pinheiro da Silva was a Brazilian lawyer, industrialist and politician who served as president of Minas Gerais. A defender of republicanism during Brazil's Imperial era, Pinheiro became the main republican figure in Minas Gerais, leading the foundation of the Republican Party of Minas Gerais in 1888.
São João del-Rei is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Minas Gerais. Founded in 1713 in homage to king John V of Portugal, the city is famed for its historic Portuguese colonial architecture. The current population is estimated at 90,225 inhabitants.
Congonhas is a historical Brazilian city located in the state of Minas Gerais. It is situated 90 kilometres (56 mi) south from Belo Horizonte, the capital of state of Minas Gerais, by the highway BR-040. As of 2020, the city had a population of 55,309.
Inconfidência Mineira was an unsuccessful separatist movement in Brazil in 1789. It was the result of a confluence of external and internal causes in what was then colonial Brazil. The external inspiration was the independence of thirteen British colonies in North America following the American Revolutionary War, a development that impressed the intellectual elite of particularly the captaincy of Minas Gerais.
Cláudio Manuel da Costa was a Brazilian poet and musician, considered to be the introducer of Neoclassicism in Brazil. He wrote under the pen name Glauceste Satúrnio, and his most famous work is the epic poem Vila Rica, that tells the history of the homonymous city, nowadays called Ouro Preto.
Sabará is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Minas Gerais. The city belongs to the Belo Horizonte metropolitan region and to the associated microregion.
Oliveira is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Minas Gerais. It is located at latitude 20º41'47" south and longitude 44º49'38" west, at an altitude of 982 metres. It is located 165 kilometres at southwest from Belo Horizonte. Its estimated population was 41,181 according to the latest IBGE census.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mariana is an archdiocese based in the city of Mariana in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.
Minas Novas is a municipality in the northeast of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. In 2020, the population was 31,497 in a total area of 1,810 km². The elevation of the urban area is 635 meters. It is part of the IBGE statistical meso-region of Jequitinhonha and the micro-region of Capelinha. It became a municipality in 1730.
Manoel da Costa Ataíde, better known as Mestre Ataíde, was a Brazilian painter, sculptor, gilder and teacher.
Sylvio Carvalho de Vasconcellos was a Brazilian architect and architectural historian, also recognized as one of the pioneers of Brazilian modernist architecture in the state of Minas Gerais.
The Vila Rica Revolt, also known as Vila Rica Sedition, was a colonial revolt against the Portuguese crown. It took place between June 28 and July 19, 1720, in Vila Rica, a city in the Royal Captaincy of Minas de Ouro and Campos Gerais dos Cataguases, in Colonial Brazil. It is traditionally considered a nativist movement by Brazilian historiography, and one of the precursors of the so-called Minas Gerais Conspiracy. Recent reviews show that it was part of a cycle of local contestations that sought to correct errors of the administration. It is also commonly referred to as Filipe dos Santos Revolt, after one of its leaders.
The colonial architecture of Brazil is defined as the architecture carried out in the current Brazilian territory from 1500, the year of the Portuguese arrival, until its Independence, in 1822.
The Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, popularly called the Our Lady of the Pillar Mother Church, is one of the best known Catholic buildings among those erected during the Brazilian Gold Rush. It is a listed monument by the National Historic and Artistic Heritage Institute (IPHAN). It is located at the Monsenhor Castilho Barbosa Square.
The Church of Our Lady of the Rosary of Black Men, also known as the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary, is a Catholic temple in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Landmarked by IPHAN, it is one of the most original sacred buildings dating from the colonial period in Brazil.
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