Igreja do Antônio Dias

One of the few churches in Minas Gerais that is not dripping in gold, the Igreja do Antônio Dias (Praça Antônio Dias, tel. 31/3551-3282, 8:30–11:45 a.m. and 1:30–4:45 p.m. Wed.–Sun., R$4 or R$1.50 for students) began in 1699 as a small chapel, commissioned by Antônio Dias himself, the man responsible for discovering all this gold. At the time, the town was just a small settlement. Later, after the settlement of Antônio Dias had grown to become Vila Rica, the chapel was reconstructed to include a new temple and a matrix of offices and functions. The reconstruction was initiated in 1727 by Manoel Francisco, father of Antônio Francisco, who is assumed to be the famous Aleijadinho. Today, the church houses the Museu do Aleijadinho as well as his and his father’s tombs, which are set into the church floorboards, as was the custom to honor rich patrons. Aleijadinho and his father rest inside the church sanctuary in the floor of the right-hand causeway, near the first archway if you were to enter the church from the front door (which you don’t). The sculpture work inside the church, although probably not that of the master Aleijadinho but of his teachers, is impressive in its quantity and detail. The museum has a few works of Aleijadinho and many works that are thought to be his. The sculptures with porcelain eyes are particularly eerie and intriguing.