The frown: Apotropism or a materialized desire of the San Franciscan elite?

Abstract

This article aims to problematize the figurehead, the figurehead of vessels in the middle region of the São Francisco River. Understanding it as a materialization of the political yearnings of the local elite to reach the post of Comarca do São Francisco, configuring the carranca as a figure of power. Finally, it discusses the figurehead, which from a historical point of view, was established as a kind of national insignia. In addition, the artistic conception itself, about the choice of animals for the process of creating the figurehead, proposes a dialogue with the figurehead signs of other European nations. As for the methodology, we used bibliographic research, which uses books and articles as a basis for its elaboration. It is concluded that for the poorest, they were associated with fear. This characteristic was due to the anthropozoomorphic imagery construction and the aspect of amazement, which deals with the ugly, had the power to remove what is represented, that is, it had an apotropaic power to scare away the evil beings that would inhabit the river. As theoretical support, we used authors such as Pardal (1981); Brandão (2009); Santaella (1983).