The white façade
Paraty's emblem.
Rodrigo Soldon from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — CC BY 2.0 · Fer14041978 — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Rodrigo Soldon from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — CC BY 2.0 · Rodrigo Soldon from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — CC BY 2.0
Santa Rita Church is the picture Paraty is known by: a small white building with a bell tower on an open square facing the bay, green mountains behind and coloured boats in front. It was built in 1722 by a brotherhood of free people of mixed race, for the churches of colonial Brazil were divided by skin colour, and each group in the town had its own. Built of stone and lime in a style attributed to Jesuit architecture, it has a façade of stone pilasters, carved wooden doors and a curved pediment, three iron balconies, and a copper weathercock on its tower. It was listed as a national monument in 1952, restored between 1967 and 1976, and then became home to Paraty's Museum of Sacred Art. The finest view is from the outside, from the quay or the small beach in front of it, especially in the morning light or at dusk.
Paraty's emblem.
With bay and mountains.
Atop the bell tower.
Largo de Santa Rita, on Paraty's waterfront
From the quay or the small beach in front, where the church appears with the bay and mountains; the light is best in the morning and at dusk.
