Valongo Wharf - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Valongo Wharf, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Significance: From 1811 to 1831 close to a million enslaved Africans arrived to the Americas at this wharf. At least half the population of Brazil has some African ancestry.  The economic disparities in Brazil are some of the most pronounced of anywhere in the world. Much of that disparity can be traced to the history of slavery in Brazil.  Only discovered in 2011, this wharf has become a place of spiritual importance for those of African ancestry in Brazil - a place to recognize those who entered this country against their will and who persevered under extreme circumstances.  Anything that can be called uniquely Brazilian is fully or at least in part African.  This is a place where that history can be recognized and honored.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images:

The paving stones of the old wharf (from whc.unesco.org)

The annual washing of the wharf (from whc.unesco.org)