Social landscapes, traveler’s narratives, writings of yesterday [Session I]
This exhibition was held from the State Public Library’s Rare Books Collection, highlighting the records of foreign travelers, from the 19th and 20th centuries.
Illustration from Viagem ao Brasil, by Louis and Elizabeth Agassiz (1938) by Louis Agassiz and Elizabeth AgassizBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
A document is any invention of human knowledge or record of external reality, culturally situated in a material, concrete, or symbolic nature, that inserts temporality, subjectivity, and social weaving through representative signs.
The accounts of chroniclers and travelers printed in the form of a book are, therefore, configured as documents. Therefore, the writing of history, based on the interpretative stitching of documents, is articulated with experiences and the imagination.
Illustration of Viagem pelo Brasil, by Johann Spix and Karl Martius (1938) by Johann Baptist von Spix and Karl Friedrich Philipp von MartiusBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
In the colonial period, the territories that today composes Brazil, were entered, unveiled, mapped by countless European travelers and intellectuals that were interested in knowing the specificities of that still poorly explored land.
Front matter of A Journey in Brazil, by Louis and Elizabeth Agassiz (1909) by Louis Agassiz and Elizabeth AgassizBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
A Journey in Brazil
Louis Agassiz e Elizabeth Cary Agassiz
Riverside Press
c.1909
Accompanied by scholars in the fields of art, geology, ornithology and by volunteers, Agassiz received support from Emperor Pedro II to make his trip to Brazil, passing through several regions of the country, including Rio de Janeiro, Pará and Ceará.
Illustration from A Journey in Brazil, by Louis and Elizabeth Agassiz (1909) by Louis Agassiz and Elizabeth AgassizBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
The chroniclers and traveler’s narratives produce a testimonial tone when describing the colonial dynamics of Portuguese America. Fauna, flora, cities, and social contexts were present in the interests of travelers as they ventured into the reports they made here.
Page 7 of Voyage aux Provinces Bresiliennes du Pará et des Amazones, de Alejandro de Belmar (1861) by Alejandro de BelmarBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
Voyauge aux Provinces Brésiliennes du Pará et des Amazones
Alejandro de Belmar
Trezise
1861
Wet Stamp of the Provincial Library of Ceará
Illustration of Le Voyage au Brésil, de Jean de Léry (1927) by Jean de LéryBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
Le voyage au Brésil
"Histoire d'un voyage fait en la terre du Brésil"Jean de Léry
Payot
1927
These travelers and chroniclers made their impressions about the daily life in the villages and provinces; and about the cultural practices of men and women from Africa who were enslaved here.
Illustration of Le Voyage au Brésil, de Jean de Léry (1927) by Jean de LéryBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
The popular idea that prevailed in Europe that South America, outside the civilized cities, was inhabited by savages was slowly being demystified by travelers who explored and lived with the natives. Even in documents written near the 20th century, it is still possible to find traces of this thought.
Illustration of Le Voyage au Brésil, de Jean de Léry (1927) by Jean de LéryBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
Elizabeth Cabot Cary Agassiz [1822-1907], Louis Agassiz [1807-1873], Jean de Léry [1534-1611] and Alejandro de Belmar [? - ?], for example, constituted to historical studies important inventories about our grandeur and contradictions.
Illustration of Viagem pelo Brasil, by Johann Spix and Karl Martius (1938) by Johann Baptist von Spix and Karl Friedrich Philipp von MartiusBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
Reise in Brasilien
"Reise in Brasilien"Johann Baptist von Spix e Karl Friedrich Phillip von Martius
Editora Imprensa Nacional
1938
4 v.
Illustration of Viagem pelo Brasil, by Johann Spix and Karl Martius (1938) by Johann Baptist von Spix and Karl Friedrich Philipp von MartiusBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
Published between 1823 and 1831 in three volumes, Spix and Martius' travel accounts were translated in 1938 by the Brazilian Geographical Historical Institute (Instituto Histórico Geográfico Brasileiro) in four volumes.
Illustration of Viagem pelo Brasil, by Johann Spix and Karl Martius (1938) by Johann Baptist von Spix and Karl Friedrich Philipp von MartiusBiblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
"We read and reread the translation, we have formed an impression (or an impression has formed on us). It is now necessary to return, or re-turn, to the original."
Antoine Berman
This is Session I of III. Continue on Session II.
Promoção
Secretaria da Cultura do Estado do Ceará
Secretária: Luísa Cela
Realização
Biblioteca Pública Estadual do Ceará
Diretora: Enide Vidal
Superintendente: Suzete Nunes
Gestão
Instituto Dragão do Mar
Diretora-presidenta: Rachel Gadelha
Diretor de Articulação: Lenildo Gomes
Gerente de Articulação Institucional: Benjamim Lucas
Coordenação de Acervo, Pesquisa e Conhecimento
Coordenador: Rodrigo Alves
Assistente: Priscila Damasceno
Bibliotecário: Lucas Corrêa
Estagiária: Madalena Herminio
Pesquisador: Lucas Rodrigues
Setor Obras Raras
Bibliotecárias: Madalena Figueiredo; Rafael Secundino; Rejane de Sousa
Curadoria, Edição e Revisão
Coordenador: Rodrigo Alves
Bibliotecário: Lucas Corrêa
Estagiária: Madalena Herminio
Pesquisador: Lucas Rodrigues
Textos
Prof. Dr. Rodrigo Alves Ribeiro
Lucas Corrêa da Cunha Silva
Comunicação
Ivy Ariane
Eri Filho
Uli Batista
Fotos
Gandhi Guimarães
