Place Information
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Vila Rica do Ouro Preto is a city in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, a former colonial mining town located in the Serra do Espinhaço mountains and designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO because of its outstanding Baroque architecture. History
Founded at the end of the 17th century, Ouro Preto (meaning Black Gold) was the focal point of the gold rush and Brazil's golden age in the 18th century. The city contains well preserved colonial architecture, with few signs of modern urban life. Churches decorated with gold and the works of Aleijadinho make Ouro Preto a popular tourist destination. In the colonial times art was fairly advanced and developed into the "Barroco Mineiro", with many sculptors (Aleijadinho), painters (Mestre Athayde), composers (Lobo de Mesquita family), poets (Thomas Gonzaga). In 1789, Ouro Preto was the starting point of the Inconfidência Mineira, a failed attempt to break from Portugal and form a Brazilian republic. In 1876 the Escola de Minas (mining engineering school) was created and set the technical basis for several mineral discoveries in Brazil. Ouro Preto was capital of Minas Gerais from 1822 until 1897, when the government moved to the new and planned city of Belo Horizonte. Research Tips
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