Abstract
Wood is one of the oldest building materials used by man for many different purposes. The Barroco period of Minas Gerais state is marked by the manufacturing of architectural and religious art made of wood. To know which plants are used by people, through the material cultural, we must understand the real or symbolic meaning of the relationship between man and the environment where he lives. This study aimed to identify taxonomically and establish ethnobotanical relationships for the plant species used in the construction of the Nossa Senhora da Conceição church, dated 1876 and located in the city of Matozinhos, Minas Gerais. Taxonomic identification was based on the anatomical characteristics of wood samples obtained from the architectural structures that make up the church and comparison with reference wood material collected in nearby plant formations plus reference texts. Histological preparations were made following the transverse, radial longitudinal and tangential sections for microscopic observations. Wood description adopted the terminology proposed by IAWA. Ethnobotanical data was obtained from specialized texts. The anatomy of historical wood samples allowed the identification of three taxa: Myracrodruon urundeuva, Dipteryx sp. and Andira sp. The results suggest that this architectural heritage was built with the wood of species chosen specifically for this purpose since the samples have structural and physical traits that attest to wood quality. The results provide a basis for future conservation efforts.
Key words:
wood anatomy; cerrado; historical heritage; conservation