São Luís, capital of Maranhão, was founded in 1812 on the island of São Luís in São Marcos Bay. It lies 806km/501mi south-east of Belém and 446km/277mi north-west of Teresima.
Bus station
Avenida dos Franceses
Airport
Aeroporto Nacional Marechal Cunha Machado
History
The town is believed to have been founded (and named after the French national saint) by Daniel de la Touche, Seigneur de la Ravardière. It was then the chief place in France Equinoxiale, a French colony in northern Brazil. The French were expelled in 1615 by a Portuguese force under the command of Jerónimo de Albuquerque, but in 1641 the Portuguese in their turn were driven out by the Dutch, finally establishing their control over the area only three years later.
There is little in São Luís to recall the time of the French colony: the narrow streets and high azulejo-clad houses are typically Portuguese. In the historic core of the town, an area of 107,000sq.m/128,000sq.yds now protected as a national monument, Portuguese influence is still more evident. Some houses have balconies with wrought-iron balustrades, roof terraces and galleries with venetian blinds to keep out the heat.
A flight of steps between Rua Portugal and Rua Djalma Dutra is called the Beco da Catarina Mina in memory of the pretty negress of that name, a freed slave who won the hearts of the social elite and herself became mistress of land and slaves.
South of Praia Grande are other interesting buildings. In Rua Jacinto Maia is the Cafua das Mercês, the old slave market, now occupied by the Museu do Negro.
A good starting-point for a walk through the old town is the Cais da Sagração, the harbor quay adjoining the Largo do Palácio at which the ships exporting sugar and cotton used to moor.
The Cathedral (Sé) built by the Jesuits in 1726 stands in Praça Dom Pedro II, adjoining the Archbishop's Palace. It became the Cathedral only in 1763, after the expulsion of the Jesuits.
The Fonte do Ribeirão (1796) in Rua dos Afogados (Largo do Ribeirão) has three iron gates giving access to underground passages which serve to carry off waste water and rainwater. It used to be thought that the passages were designed to link the various churches with one another.
In the markets of São Luís visitors can buy lace, nets made of buriti and babassu palm fibres and other craft products typical of Maranhão. In Avenida Dom Pedro II, Rua do Sol and Rua São Pantaleão - in which is the church of São Pantaleão (1780-1817) - also a number of craft shops.
In Rua Portugal (in the old town) is the Museum of the Visual Arts (Museu de Artes Visuais), with works by Maranhão artists and European azulejos of the 19th and 20th centuries.
A short distance away, on Avenida Dom Pedro II, is the Palácio dos Leões ("Palace of the Lions"), now occupied by the state government and the State Art Gallery. The site was once occupied by a fort which until 1615 protected the capital of France Equinoxiale.
On the outskirts of São Luís is the Alumar aluminium plant, one of the largest in the world, to which a seemingly endless succession of trains bring bauxite from the Serra dos Carajás (Pará state). There are conducted visits of the plant on Saturdays (tel. 216 1155).
A number of popular festivals are celebrated in São Luís. Some of them are of African origin, for example the Tambor de Crioula in June and the Tambor de Mina, dedicated to St Sebastian, in July; others have Portuguese roots.
The Museum of Folk Art (Museu de Arte Popular), which is also a center of folk culture, is in Rua 28 de Julho. In the same street are a number of houses decorated with Portuguese azulejos.
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