Congonhas

The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos was built in stages through the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, and what makes it a World Heritage site is the sculpture. Antonio Francisco Lisboa, called Aleijadinho, carved twelve Old Testament prophets in soapstone for the terrace in front of the church between 1800 and 1805, placing them so that they read as a group in argument, each with a scroll and a gesture. Below, six chapels on the slope hold sixty-six painted cedar figures staging the Passion. Aleijadinho was by then losing the use of his hands and fingers to a degenerative disease, and worked with tools strapped to his wrists - a detail that is repeated everywhere and is central to how Brazil regards him. The prophets are outdoors and weathering, which is a continuing conservation problem.

History

Settlement began around 1700 as gold mining spread through central Minas Gerais, and Congonhas do Campo grew on the banks of the Maranhão, where gold was worked largely with enslaved labour; the river divided the parish side, under Ouro Preto, from Matosinhos opposite, under Rio das Mortes. The Chapel of Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Pretos, built by enslaved people, was already in use by 1729, and Congonhas became a district in 1746. In 1757 the Portuguese miner Feliciano Mendes, recovering from a serious illness, began collecting donations for a sanctuary to Bom Jesus de Matosinhos and kept at it until his death in 1765; the church, forecourt and chapels were built in stages paid for by pilgrims, the Jubilee was authorised by the Pope in 1779 and first celebrated in 1780, and around the turn of the 19th century Aleijadinho and his workshop made the Passion groups and the prophets. In 1811-1812 Wilhelm Ludwig von Eschwege set up the Fábrica Patriótica nearby, the first ironworks in Brazil to produce iron on an industrial scale, and Lazarist priests arrived in 1827 to run the sanctuary, opening a seminary and a school. UNESCO listed the sanctuary in 1985 (Wikipedia, Congonhas).

The main sights

• Twelve soapstone prophets - carved 1800 to 1805 and arranged as a group.
• Six Passion chapels - sixty-six painted cedar figures on the slope below.
• Work done with strapped tools - carved as the sculptor lost use of his hands.
• Outdoor weathering - the ongoing conservation problem with the stone.

When to go

April to September. Half a day.

Good to know

Congonhas is a small industrial town with little else for a visitor, and most people come for a few hours from Ouro Preto or Belo Horizonte. Some prophets are periodically under conservation cover. The chapels are viewed through grilles rather than entered.

Nearby

Ouro Preto is south-east; Tiradentes and Sao Joao del Rei are further south.

Key facts