In One of the Mines

Ouro Preto means Black Gold. A title given to the city because the gold extracted here was dark, covered in iron oxide upon extraction.

It was the epicentre of Brazil and Portugal's wealth, representing 70% of gold production in the 18th century,

The darker side of the gold story is, of course, who did the work, and the abominable conditions. Tens of thousands of slaves were brought from Africa, working in conditions that ensured short life spans. Accidents and respiratory disease caused early death for many. Conditions were by all accounts, predictably quite brutal.

This old mine we visited is now named in the memory of Chico Rei, a man believed to have once been a king in Congo before enslavement. He and his followers reportedly hid gold dust in their hair while washing it in the mines. He used these savings to buy his son's freedom, then his own, and eventually purchased the very mine where he had been enslaved.

He was subsequently credited with buying the freedom of hundreds of others, and with building churches and other notable buildings in Ouro Preto.