The Nago Tree of Freedom: Marcos Theodoro Pimentel and his Family between Slavery and Post-Abolition. Itaparica, 1834-1968

Abstract

This article deals with the trajectory of three generations of the Pimentel family, starting with the arrival in Brazil of the African Marcos in the late 1830s until the advent of the priestess Ondina Valéria Pimentel, the fourth spiritual leader of the Candomble temple Ilê Axé Opô Afonjá, in the year 1968. The use of varied documentation in national and international archives made possible the reconstruction of the genealogy of a family that remained united throughout the second half of the 19th century until the last decades of the 20th century, being Marcos responsible for the foundation of the Nago cult of the Egunguns on the Island of Itaparica, in Bahia. The article also addresses Marcos' judicial confrontations to defend the interests of his allies and the relationship between him and his children.