Mucugê is located at 900m altitude in the middle of a privileged landscape.
Mucugê is surrounded by beautiful mountains, rivers, waterfalls and caves. As noted, the city is also rich in history, having as one of the most striking features, the old colonial houses in Portuguese style.
The main backdrop to this history is mining, an activity that still develops in the place, although on a much smaller scale.
The town also has a busy calendar of events that attracts tourists from many regions, as well as museums, a philharmonic and planned, tree-lined squares.
The streets are carefully cleaned, are surrounded by flower beds and gardens, surrounded by mountains on all sides.
It has a great diversity in tourist facilities, catering to all audiences: hotels, hostels, inns and guesthouses. The bars and restaurants of the city are busy and, in the late afternoon, expand to the streets, distributing their tables and chairs along the sidewalks.
Mucugê is listed as a national heritage site by IPHAN (Instituto do Patrimônio Histórico e Artístico Nacional) and was built on the banks of the Serra do Sincorá. Surrounded by mountains, the average temperature in the city is 19˚C.
Its main highlight is the Municipal Park of Mucugê, where the Sempre-Viva Project is located, focused on environmental education and preservation, as well as the Living Museum of the Garimpo.
The municipality is also privileged by its location, since 52% of its territory is part of the Parque Nacional da Chapada Diamantina.
Mucugê was considered one of the most beautiful cities of Chapada Diamantina, has a reasonable infrastructure to receive visitors, preserves a set of colonial mansions and serves as a base for excursions to the surrounding area.
It was in the municipality of Mucugê in Chapada Diamantina, 48 km from Andaraí, that the first diamond was found.
It is said that on June 25, 1844, Cristiano Pereira do Nascimento, godson of Colonel Cazuza do Prado, one of the great cattle ranchers of the region, went to wash his hands in the Cumbuca stream and found a diamond.
Word spread quickly; soon the “diamond rush” began – everyone wanting to wash their hands in this stream!
See the map Chapada Diamantina
Mining attracted large landowners from other states to Mucugê, who moved there with their families and slaves.
Diamond mining also attracted many Europeans and Arabs, generating a power struggle, a fight for land, for slaves and for the best mining sites.
Everything became a “God in heaven” where whoever could do more, cried less, until in 1870, when the deposits were exhausted, the city directed its development to other activities such as farming and agriculture.
Mucugê serves as a base for excursions to the surrounding area.
The program can include visits to caves and waterfalls, walking or cycling along trails and canoeing on rivers.
The Sempre Viva Project, based in Mucugê, promotes studies on the local flora and tries to preserve the Always-Living Flower, which was on the verge of extinction due to predatory exploitation for export, in large quantities to Europe, where it was used as a hat adornment.
Videos about Mucugê in Chapada Diamantina
História de Mucugê na Bahia
Mucugê Guia de Turismo
Cemitério Bizantino em Mucugê
Mucugê Documentário12:47
Andaraí e Mucugê09:42
Pontos Turísticos de Mucugê - Reportagem
See also the Tourist Spots of Chapada Diamantina
Tourist Spots of Mucugê
- Byzantine Cemetery (CEMITÉRIO SANTA ISABEL)
- Church of St Elizabeth
- Public Archives
- Mucugê Municipal Park
- Garimpo Living Museum
- Siberia Waterfall
- Funis Waterfall
- Cardoso Waterfall
- Andorinhas Waterfall
- Cristais Waterfall
- Serra do Capa Bode
In this beautiful city, the first diamonds of Chapada Diamantina were discovered in 1844.
One of its most interesting attractions is the only Byzantine-style cemetery in Brazil, which draws the attention of those who arrive in the city. Houses and flowered squares embellish the city that is also listed as a national heritage site by the National Historical and Artistic Institute (Iphan) and was built on the banks of the Serra do Sincorá;
1. Byzantine Cemetery (CEMITÉRIO SANTA ISABEL)
Built from 1854 to 1886, the Santa Isabel cemetery is on the rocky slope of the Serra do Sincorá.
The site was chosen because of the presence of a cholera epidemic, which led the church to ban burials in the religious temple. It has a set of mausoleums that reproduce miniature facades of churches and chapels whitewashed, which earned it the name “Byzantine cemetery”.
Those who died of the disease could not be buried in the church, as was the custom, because it was feared that the epidemic would spread.
So to “compensate” their dead for the disadvantage of not being buried in the holy ground of a Christian temple, families built beautiful mausoleums in Byzantine and Gothic styles, imitating church facades.
2. Igreja de Santa Isabel
It is the main church of the city, built by slaves in the 19th century.
The Church of Santa Isabel was built in the mid-19th century by Friar Caetano de Troyria with great help from the population, on land donated by Colonel Reginaldo Landulpho. The building has a neoclassical façade, with three internal naves and a choir in the shape of “U”, structured by a stone masonry and internal pillars.
In 1852, a public deed was drawn up for the construction of the chancel, but it was not until 1855 that the church began to function. In the year 1952 some additional interventions were carried out, such as the construction of the churchyard, the access staircase and the replacement of the stone floor with the tile floor, and in 1978 restoration interventions were recorded, such as the recovery of the roof.
3. Public Archive
The space exhibits documents, films and photographs about the history of the city.
4. Municipal Park of Mucugê
Maintained by the City Hall with the support of the State and the Catholic University of Salvador, the park houses a center dedicated to the preservation of local fauna and flora.
Within it are the waterfalls of Plabinha and Tiburtino, freely accessible to visitors and excellent for bathing. The Tiburtino waterfall is one of the waterfalls of the Cumbuca stream, where the first diamonds were found.
5. Projeto Sempre-Viva
Projeto Sempre Viva is a quiet, easy and very pleasant walk that takes care of the preservation of a tiny and charming little flower, the evergreen, the one often used in bridal bouquets;
Once at risk of extinction due to predatory extraction, the little plant now has a safe place to show off why it is so sought after – once taken from the ground, it does not change its appearance for up to 60 years!
Sempre-Viva Flower is typical of Chapada Diamantina and becomes a symbol of preservation.
6. Garimpo Living Museum
The Garimpo Living Museum is housed in an old miner’s den restored and adapted to exhibit objects linked to the history of the Diamantina cycle that began in Mucugê.
The visitor can delight in the history of diamond mining in Bahia, also getting to know natural diamonds and carbonates, English cutting machines from the 19th century, all the tools that the miner used and much more.
Visiting the Garimpo Museum is a true immersion in history, not only of Mucugê but of the Chapada Diamantina.
7. Siberia Waterfall
Those willing to face the obstacles to reach the foot of this 5m high waterfall hidden inside a canyon will be dazzled by the 200m high stone wall.
8. Funis Waterfall
Waterfall with five natural steps, considered the most beautiful in the surroundings.
9. Cardoso Waterfall
Much of the way is made by trails flanked by beautiful rock formations and fields of evergreens.
10. Andorinhas Waterfall
Formed by several waterfalls. A little paradise!
11. Crystal waterfall
Recently discovered, this waterfall is situated at the bottom of a canyon.
The trail to it passes through fields where you can see many species of bromeliads and orchids.
12. Serra do Capa Bode
At an altitude of 1,200m, flying saucers are said to have appeared here. Astronomy classes are held there for groups.
History of Mucugê
Mucugê has an interesting history, which begins with its formation in the eighteenth century, being considered one of the oldest of Chapada Diamantina. It was also the location in Bahia where the first valuable diamond stones were discovered by a prospector known as Cazuza do Prado in 1844.
This discovery attracted thousands of people to the region in search of wealth, starting a real race to the possible diamond deposits around the Mucugê River. Thus, what was once a small settlement, in the year 1848, already added a population that exceeded 30,000 inhabitants, mostly miners and traders.
That was when the settlement of Mucugê do Paraguaçu appeared.
During this period, the region developed in a wealthy way. Even today it is possible to observe the opulent mansions that occupy the city center, even the cemetery. This is because, in 1855, after an outbreak of cholera that ravaged the country, an imperial decree, aiming to contain the high number of deaths, prohibited the burial of people inside churches, a common practice at that time.
With nowhere to bury their dead, the authorities of Mucugê chose an interesting place to build a cemetery: at the foot of a mountain opposite the town. As this is an old mining region, very rich in that period, no resources were spared and, in some cases, architects created the tombs adorned with great care, imitating small churches and Catholic temples.
However, in 1870 diamond mining collapsed, forcing the region to find other alternative economic activities. Thus, coffee cultivation and cattle breeding became the main source of income for São João do Paraguaçu, a name that came to be called the city in 1890, when it was elevated to the status of Parish.
In 1917, the city was officially renamed Mucugê. It was during this same period that the region went through a profound economic decline, registering a high rate of population exodus, which lasted throughout the first half of the 20th century.
Faced with the extent of the economic crisis it was facing, the exploitation of the fields of evergreen flowers, a plant species with more than 400 variations existing in the region, began.
The European continent became the largest exporter of the plant, used as a decorative item. Today, some endemic species of the plant are threatened with extinction.
Finally, comes the Tourism, allowing to combine the historical, cultural and environmental preservation of the city, also serving as a source of income for thousands of families who live not only in the place, but throughout its surroundings.
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Tourism and Travel Guide of Mucugê in Chapada Diamantina
Mucugê, from historic town to tourist destination in Bahia
