MANDINGA, THERAPY, DECORATION, MUSIC, HOUSE WARES AND DERISION: THE VARIOUS USES OF HORNS

Abstract

This essay lists, describes and analyzes bovine horns both in terms of mate­rial and immaterial use, revisiting the literature on the subject and areas of state of Pará, Northern Brazil, in which they are offered for sale or exhibi­tion, indicating the various types of existing demand for this type of product. The first of these locations is the Ver-o-Peso Market, in Belém, Brazil, com­mercial hub that concentrates knowledge and customs of the Amazon, for being in the state capital, overlooking the delta of the Amazon River. The other location is the Northeastern portion of the state, along the State High­way Governor Fernando Guillon – PA 124, in the municipality of Santarém Novo, 168 km northeast of Belém. There we can find a stand with a variety of bovine horns painted and exhibited at the roadside, whose owner is the informant of this research. Finally, relevant subject reading and direct obser­vation are the sources of usage that makes this bovine end in spells, therapy, decoration, music, derision and house wares. Keywords: Religiosity, witchcraft, magic, house ware, aesthetics, semiotics.