A few days ago I visited the Grão-Vasco Museum in Viseu. It is impossible not to be intrigued Adoration of the MagiWritten by Portuguese Vasco Fernandez (Grand Vasco) and the Flemish Francisco Henrique. This work, dating from 1501–1506, provides the first reference to Brazil in Western art, where Balthasar is represented as an Indian, recognizable by his feathered headdress. His painting was picked up shortly after the discovery, by Pedro Alvares Cabral, of what was initially called Tira da Vera Cruz and was certainly a reaction to Pedro Vaz de Caminha’s letter to Manuel I describing the indigenous population as susceptible to receiving Christianity, an idea that could not be However, given the short time the Portuguese spent there before the fleet headed for India, it was a desire rather than a conviction, even though Brazil is today the country with the most Catholics in the world.
I think the Portuguese have never lost their fascination with Brazil. As a colony, it has had an extraordinary history. The Portuguese royal family came to live there, Rio de Janeiro was the capital of the Portuguese Empire, and the Portuguese prince declared independence himself, who celebrated his 200th birthday yesterday. Slavery took a long time to be abolished.
