Monumento Bandeirantes

The Monumento Bandeirantes is a fifty meters long and sixteen meters high granite monument in Sao Paolo, unveiled in 1954 as part of the city’s 4th centennial. The monument pays tribute to the bandeirantes and reflects the diversity for which Brazil is so well known, depicting Portuguese settlers alongside black and indigenous men and women, working together to pull the a canoe, a familiar scene in their ubiquitous river expeditions.

Bandeirantes were men wanting to become rich, and quick. They wouldn’t bother cultivate any plantations, because the results were slow. They didn’t fear the enormous risks of exploring unknown lands, fighting against unknown tribes, without barely any support. It was interesting to the Portuguese Crown to stimulate the bandeirantes. They provided useful information for mapping the land, while not claiming any property rights. If any gold or precious stone was found, the only way to benefit from them would be to export to Portugal, and pay the respective taxes.