Aparecida - New Basilica

(Local Name: Basílica Nova) Basílica Nova

The New Basilica of Nossa Senhora Aparecida, which is linked with the town center by a concrete footbridge, houses a museum of sacred art (2nd floor) and a historical museum (4th floor) which documents the social and economic development ("coffee cycle" and "sugar-cane cycle") of the Paraíba valley. On the 18th floor of the principal tower there is a viewing platform. The complex, which covers an area of 18,000sq.m/21,500sq.yds, draws pilgrims throughout the year, but particularly on October 12th and December 8th, the feast days of Nossa Senhora Aparecida, a 42cm/17in. high figure of whom is venerated here.