ATLANTIC AMAZON · PARÁ, BRAZIL
Stories that cross rivers. Knowledge shaped in clay. Landscapes found nowhere else.
MEET THE ARCHIPELAGO
Between rivers, grasslands, forests and the Atlantic, Marajó brings together 17 municipalities, ancient memories and a living identity.
Navigate the territory →HISTORICAL FORMATION
Marajó did not begin with European arrival. Indigenous peoples occupied, shaped and understood this territory for millennia. Archaeology, colonial documents and local memory reveal a plural history that is still being written.
Archaeologists recognize occupations earlier than the Marajoara phase, including Ananatuba, Mangueiras, Formiga and Acauã. Communities built artificial mounds and developed lifeways adapted to floods, fishing and grasslands.
Settlements, earthworks, intensive food production and ceramics served domestic, political and ritual life. Dates and interpretations vary by site, so “Marajoara” should not be treated as the name of one single tribe.
Colonial sources recorded several peoples. “Nheengaíba” was a broad label used for multiple groups. War, epidemics, enslavement, missions and colonial settlements profoundly transformed their societies.
Alexandre Rodrigues Ferreira documented the island; Ferreira Penna, Ladislau Netto and Charles Hartt advanced early studies. Helen Palmatary, Betty Meggers, Clifford Evans and many others followed.
History of Marajó research ↗We use “European contact” and “colonization,” not only “discovery”: the archipelago already held peoples, territories and histories. Archaeological labels are research tools, not automatic substitutes for Indigenous identities.
CLAY, MEMORY & KNOWLEDGE
Funerary urns, vessels, plates, figurines, stools and ceramic pubic covers carry complex graphic repertoires. Incision, excision, modelling, appliqué and red, white and black painting created objects involved in daily life, feasts, identities and rituals.
Clay preparation, tempering, coiling or modelling, smoothing, decoration, drying and firing. Technical choices varied by function and community.
Geometric, animal and human motifs were combined. Current research examines composite bodies, gender, image agency and the contexts in which objects circulated.
Objects removed from sites are protected archaeological heritage. Contemporary craft is new creation: it engages ancient references while expressing living identities.
IPHAN guidance ↗Across Marajó, artists incorporate archaeological repertoires into their own work. These relationships involve memory, affection, livelihoods and debates over authorship.
Early records combined observation, collecting and museum-building. Later archaeology documented layers, contexts and relationships among objects. This history must also acknowledge local residents, guides and field workers frequently omitted from published accounts.
Sent by Charles Hartt, William S. Barnard recorded Pacoval and Guajará and assembled over 200 objects, mostly fragments.
See the Notes, maps and drawings ↗The earliest excavations cited by historians took place on Marajó mounds, linking researchers, residents and institutions.
Historical study ↗They introduced systematic methods and organized ceramic phases. Their influential conclusions were later revised by new dates and interpretations.
Excavation photographs ↗Anna Roosevelt, Denise Schaan and current teams broadened research on mounds, food, regional networks, imagery and conservation.
Anajás mission, 2024 ↗These archaeological pieces are held in different collections. Provenance, style and object biography matter; captions follow the records supplied by each collection.
Contemporary craft is not an unchanged remnant of the past; it is present-day creation. Meanings depend on artist, form and context and should not be reduced to a universal symbol dictionary.
Contemporary forms inspired by archaeological vessels, now made for memory, exhibition or decoration.
Faces, arms and bodies merge with containers, evoking composite beings and transformation.
Triangular archaeological objects whose relationships to gender and ritual remain debated.
Present-day pendants engage Amazonian memory and protection while remaining new works.
Owls, snakes, caimans, frogs, fish and birds inspire modelling without a single fixed meaning.
Plates, bowls, water jars, lamps and small sculptures connect repertoire, use and livelihoods.
This figure refers to forms produced and preserved by Ailson Tavares Ferreira, of Ponta de Pedras, not to the total number of archaeological types. The portal begins a living catalogue to be expanded with each work’s name, authorship, dimensions, technique, oral history and original photograph.
Future collection →In 2024, the Goeldi Museum and IPHAN recorded four sites in Anajás after erosion and drought exposed archaeological material. Researchers continue to combine excavation, ceramic analysis, conservation and community collaboration.
Research in Anajás →Knowledge, festivals, music, food and ceramics connect generations.
PLAN YOUR CROSSING
For travellers arriving from elsewhere in Brazil or abroad, Belém is the main gateway. From the Pará capital, the journey continues across the Guajará Bay towards different parts of the archipelago.
The key passenger terminal for Marajó services. Boats serve Camará/Salvaterra, Soure and other destinations depending on operator and season.
901 Marechal Hermes Avenue · Umarizal · Belém, ParáJúlio Cezar Ribeiro Airport in Val-de-Cans. Continue by taxi, ride-hailing service or public transport to the waterway terminal.
Júlio César Avenue, s/n · Val-de-Cans · BelémEngenheiro Hildegardo Silva Nunes Terminal receives interstate and regional coaches. Continue from São Brás to the waterfront.
Praça do Operário, s/n · São Brás · BelémENTRY ROUTES
The road gateway to Salvaterra, with local vans and buses connecting to Salvaterra, Soure and nearby communities.
View Camará Port ↗Passenger vessels may operate direct or stopping services. Confirm the final port shown on your ticket.
View Soure terminal ↗Breves and other towns have their own river connections. Check the municipality page and operator before travelling.
Choose a municipality →Timetables, fares, stops, vessel types and departure terminals may change. Arrive early and confirm directly with the terminal or operator. Travellers taking a vehicle should separately check ferry services departing from the Icoaraci area.
INTERACTIVE MAP
Choose a city to locate it on the map, visit its local portal and open it directly in Google Earth.
17 destinations to discover
MADE IN MARAJÓ
A marketplace dedicated to makers from the territory. Every purchase brings the public closer to a Marajoara artisan.
Visit the shop →by Mãos de Barro Studio
R$ 189by Biojoias do Arari
R$ 78by Tramas de Soure
R$ 145MARAJÓ JOURNAL
TRAVEL · ESSENTIAL GUIDECrossings, distances, seasons and choices for a slower, more thoughtful itinerary.
SELL WITH US
Create your shop, tell your story and sell throughout Brazil in a marketplace dedicated to Marajó.
Open my shop →