Marcelina da Silva e seu mundo: novos dados para uma historiografia do Candomblé Ketu

Abstract

The Casa Branca terreiro is one of the oldest in Bahia, and, according to oral tradition, it was founded after a voyage to Africa undertaken by two early priestesses, African freedwoman Marcelina da Silva and her ialorixá, the latter remembered only by her ritual title, Iyá Nassô. Until now, there has been very little historical evidence to clarify the lives of these two women or to support (or discredit) their legendary trip. The present paper presents newly uncovered data tracing the life history of Marcelina da Silva, from her early experiences as a slave in Bahia in the 1830s and the political context of her journey to Africa with her daughter, Maria Magdalena, and Iyá Nassô. It also chronicles Marcelina's rise to wealth and power during a second stay in Bahia that began in the 1840s and details her participation in a transatlantic network of Nagô (i.e. Yoruba) freedmen active in promoting the orixá religion in Brazil, a group which also included other crucial figures in the history of candomblé, such as the babalaô Bamboxê Obitikó. The paper also presents important new information about Iyá Nassô and her life in Bahia.