Amazon

Wow, thanks to Joao (a stamp collector in Brazil) my collection of native people in the Amazon is really growing....these are wonderful cards since the peoples & cultures are rapidly changing as a result of outside influences. Joao also sent some lovely Brazilian stamps featuring aspects of indigenous culture including rock art and ceramics. He kindly sent extra cards that I will pass on to my students!

A member of the Maku tribe located near Rio Negro. Behind him is the maloca, or ancestral long house, shared by several patrilineal related families with a separate entrance for men and another for women.

Using indigenous hunting/fishing tools along the Rio Marauia in northwestern Brazil.

A Kaiabi paje (shaman) and his red macaws. Macaw feathers are used for many decorations.1300 Kaiabi live in the Xingu reserve located in Mato Grosso, and shared with 14 other tribal groups.

A Karaja chief from Bananal Island decorated with body paint and a fantastic bird feather headdress. Tribal members live in 29 villages in Central Brazil; their population has declined from 45,000 to 3000 today.