“Caminhos da Ilha Grande”: itinerário pelas casas de cultura no Centro Histórico de São Luís – MA

Abstract

The city of São Luís manifests popular wealth and preservation of history in the architectural heritage, guaranteeing its title of “Cultural Heritage of Humanity” in 1997, for having the most significant collection of colonial civil construction in Latin America. Through the development of a designed and urbanistic guide by the Casas de Cultura of the Historic Center of São Luís, this work proposes the appreciation of heritage architecture through tourist activity. The Houses of Culture represent safe spaces that house the collection and the most diverse cultural manifestations of the city, classified as: museums, theaters, chapels, forts, art and production centers, among others. Currently, there are more than 20 Houses of Culture, most of them sheltered by colonial architecture and inserted in the Historic Center. Based on these factors, the present study was developed per understanding of the preservation of the memory and identity of a people through the promotion of cultural tourism in listed historic centers, which makes it possible to see in the city the history that is told through urban space and architecture. The Guia Caminhos da Ilha Grande, presents a detailed study on the Houses of Culture, highlighting historical and architectural factors that make up these spaces, and an experimental circuit through 9 museums in order to present the multiplicity of Maranhão culture.