Brazil Slide Series: Collection A Heranca Cultural De Minas Gerais, Slide No. 0006.

Creator

Herbert Knup
Jon M. Tolman
Siegfried Muhlhausser

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Publication Date

3-2-2009

Description

6) View of the Pico do Itacolomí mountain with the church of Nossa Senhora das Mercês e Perdões in the foreground. The discovery of major deposits of gold and precious mineraIs had important repercussions, since by the middle of the Seventeenth century sugar profits, the mainstay of the colonial economy, had steadily begun to decline in the face of competition from Dutch sugar coming from the Antilles. It was below the Itacolomí peak, nestled in central Minas Gerais, that the colonial town of Vila Rica (now known as Ouro Preto), the center of the large gold rush in the Eighteenth century, was founded.6) Vista do Pico do Itacolomi e, ao fundo, a Igreja de Nossa Senhora das Mercês e Perdões. A descoberta de grandes minas de ouro e minerais preciosos teve grande repercussão, já que pela metade do século XVII o lucro do açúcar, o sustentáculo da economia colonial, começou a declinar vertiginosamente em face à competição do açúcar holandês, vindo das Antilhas. Foi abaixo do Pico do Itacolomi, situado no centro de Minas Gerais, que a pequena cidade de Vila Rica (hoje conhecida como Ouro Preto, centro da grande corrida do ouro do século XVIII), foi fundada.

Publisher

Latin American and Iberian Institute / University of New Mexico

Rights

Brazil Slide Series Collection: This article is copyrighted by the Latin American & Iberian Institute (LAII) of the University of New Mexico. Rights permission is for standard academic, non-commercial, use of these materials. Proper citation of this material should include title, author, publisher, date, and URL. Copyright Latin American and Iberian Institute University of New Mexico 1992