“These are indigenous plants”

circulation of knowledge about flora in the philosophical journey of Alexandre Rodrigues Ferreira (1783-1792)

Abstract

This article aims to demarcate the collection of indigenous knowledge about plants present in the documentation produced on the philosophical journey of the Portuguese Brazilian naturalist Alexandre Rodrigues Ferreira through the Portuguese colonial Amazon (1783-1792). The scientific expedition covered the territories of the captaincies of Pará, São José do Rio Negro and Mato Grosso, and Cuiabá. One of its objectives was to inventory the flora, fauna, minerals, and local populations. In the field, the naturalist used indigenous knowledge about herbs, roots, wood, and palm trees, seeking to use them to generate wealth for the Portuguese Crown and/or for survival in the backlands. The knowledge associated with indigenous management of nature was also incorporated into the interests of natural history, at a time when modern science was structured based on reason, observation, and experimentation. In the historiographical arena, there is a dialogue with studies discussing the idea that illustrated scientific knowledge was produced from reciprocal transits/contacts, although marked by asymmetrical power relations, with subjects whose intention was to subjugate.