Museum of the Indian | Museu do Índio

Though you may find many museums and cultural institutions dedicated to Portuguese history and Brazilian history after the Portuguese arrived there is only one official institution in Brazil that is exclusively dedicated to the indigenous cultures and tribes of Brazil.

The objective of the Indian Museum (Museu do Indio) is to present people with accurate information regarding these indigenous societies as well as to tell the story of these cultures known as Povos Indigenas in Portuguese. The museum was created in Rio de Janeiro in 1953 by Darcy Ribeiro.

The museum was housed in an old mansion in the Botafogo district built by an entrepreneur named Joao Rodrigues Teixeira. The building has 11 rooms which feature many exhibitions of the various tribes, not all the wealth of artefacts are on display but the Indian Museum has an archive with more than 30,000 artefacts, 50,000 photographs, 200 video and sound recordings and more than 500,000 historical documents. Many of these documents also show the political position of the indigenous people from the 19th century to the present day.

All of this information provides viewers with an in depth look into the social, religious and economic lifestyle of the indigenous people. The exhibits are not just appreciated from the perspective of knowledge but they are also set up in a way that is very artistic and interesting. There are even interactive exhibits for children who visit the museum.

The gardens are also used as a space for four life size exhibitions which depict the dwelling places of the tribes such as the Xingu kitchen showing the materials used to cook and eat and also a Kuarup, which is a ritual house.

For those who are interested in learning about ancient tribes and life pre and post Portuguese settlement from the indigenous perspective, a visit to the Indian Museum is a must.

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