SÍTIO ARQUEOLÓGICO DE SÃO MIGUEL ARCANJO

These ruins are part of the "Jesuit missions circuit", straddling three countries: Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil. The ruins of the São Miguel das Missões mission are remarkable in that their ochre sandstone walls are still standing, at least for the most part, whereas the other missions have undergone little or no restoration. The dimensions of this building, constructed in 1735, are impressive. It's easy to imagine in situ the college, offices and houses that existed in the Jesuit era. Listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site along with the neighboring Argentine and Paraguayan missions, it is the only Jesuit mission to the Guaranis that is really worth a visit on the Brazilian side. The Italian Father João Batista Primolli, who founded the mission, had planned to add a second tower as an astronomical observatory, but this was never built. Inside, there's an interesting museum featuring sacred sculptures from the ^17th and ^18th centuries, most of them in painted wood, taken from the various ruins of the surrounding missions. You can admire the exuberant nature of this enchanting place, where tree roots have invaded the mission stones, as in the temples of Angkor Wat. In the evening, you can enjoy a sound and light show projected onto the façade. For the record, the 1994 film Mission, directed by Roland Joffé and starring Robert de Niro, deals with the 150-year history of the Jesuit missions to the Guaranis.