1630s–1816: Throughout Brazil, enslaved Africans served as both the primary producers of export commodities and visible symbols of their owners’ social status.

1630s–1816: Throughout Brazil, enslaved Africans served as both the primary producers of export commodities and visible symbols of their owners’ social status. Wealthy Portuguese families utilized “strong slaves” to carry wives and children in covered hammocks or sedan chairs to social calls and church services. These chairs were often adorned with velvet or damask cloths to protect the occupants from the sun while showcasing the household’s affluence. This practice of using humans as status-driven transport persisted for centuries, as documented by both seventeenth-century mercenaries and early nineteenth-century travelers.