Town founded in 1711 in Minas Gerais, the mining area of NE Brazil; declared national monument, 1933; a world heritage site; centre of gold and diamond trading during the colonial era, with wealth reflected in its architecture; showcase of the work of the sculptor Antônio Francisco (Aleijadinho) Lisboa (17381814); on 24 June Ouro Preto becomes capital of Minas Gerais for that day only.
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.
Important Data
Population: Data from the 2000 Census (IBGE)
Resident population: 66,277 Urban area: 56,292 Rural area: 9,985 Area of the municipality: 1,245 km² Temperature: between 6 and 28 degrees Celsius.The city is linked by good roads to:
Belo Horizonte 100 km Rio de Janeiro 475 km São Paulo 675 km Brasília 840 kmBordering municipalities are:
North: Itabirito and Santa Bárbara South: Ouro Branco, Catas Altas da Noruega, Piranga and Itaverava East: Mariana West: Belo Vale and CongonhasHistory
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 1789, Ouro Preto was the starting point of the Inconfidência Mineira, a failed attempt to break from Portugal and form a Brazilian republic. Ouro Preto was capital of Minas Gerais from 1822 until 1897, when the government moved to the new and planned city of Belo Horizonte.
The Economy
Although Ouro Preto now relies heavily on the tourist industry for part of its economy, there are important metallurgic and mining industries located in the city, such as Alcan - Alumínio do Brasil, the most important aluminum factory in the country, the Companhia Vale do Rio Doce and others.
Minerals of note are: gold, hematite, dolomite, turmaline, pirite, moscovite, topaz and imperial topaz. The imperial topaz is a stone only found in Ouro Preto.
The University and the "Republics"
Ouro Preto is also a university city with an intense student life. The Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto has approximately 5 thousand students.
The ""republics"" of Ouro Preto are unique in Brazil. For more on the "republics" see Portal Ouro Preto
Of special interest to visitors is the MUSEU MINERALÓGICO DA ESCOLA DE MINAS (Mineralogy Museum), belonging to the Mining School of the prestigious Federal University of Ouro Preto.
Miscellaneous
The beautiful town of Ouro Preto was the most remarkable of the settings chosen for the humorous movie "Moon Over Parador" (1988), with Richard Dreyfuss and Sonia Braga as the main characters in the story.
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