Dear Scholars:

This PDF includes the preface, and then portions of chapters 4-5. The preface is not mandatory reading, but I include it in case we don’t have time

to discuss it in class. The basic points are this: Brazilian colonists (esp “bandeirante” explorers) discover gold in the 1690s, and then diamonds in

the 1720s. This leads to a mass push for mining. In the years to follow there are multiple political debates (even a small war) over all the economic rules of the mines: can Jesuits come in? how much should gold be taxed? who

should be in charge of the diamond mines? One of the results is the decision that diamond mines are to be exclusive property of a single

individual via a 4 yr contract. This individual was the diamond “contractor” and it was one of these men that Chica da Silva would marry.

Read the preface if you have time and are interested, otherwise skip to ch 4 and 5, which most directly tell the story of Chica da Silva’s life, family,

possessions, and social position.