Photography and documental value: The Carlos Chagas archive

Abstract

Centered on the organization of the Carlos Chagas archive, the article explores methodological concerns in the technical handling of such material. It discusses the archival organization of photographs and analyzes some groups of images from the Chagas archive, particularly photographs concerning the discovery of Chagas' disease, in Lassance, where the scientist initially went to combat malaria. The goal is to identify processes of production of meaning that are built into the methodology for classifying these documents. The article examines to what extent the images of Chagas' stay in Lassance took on new meaning because of the weight this discovery had on the scientist's career and likewise on the production and dissemination of his memory.