| Salvador - Others - Lacerda Elevator |
The Elevador Lacerda went beyond the function of serving only as a link of
connection between the high part and low party of the city. Today it is one of the most well known postcards of Salvador and is used daily as a
belvedere by thousands of tourists who love the 30 second trip between one point of the city to the other.
The streets of the old center of Salvador were always very steep and many times
even the wagons couldn’t go up the many slopes to the top of the hills. Even the transportation of goods was complicated which forced the people
to use cranes and other mechanisms ever since the middle of the 17th century.
Finally, in 1873, Salvador got its first real elevator to help going between the
two points of the city. Built by the engineer Antônio Lacerda, the first version had to cabines fixed in the rock of the mountain and was called
Elevador da Conceição. In 1932, it got two new cabins and began to be called Elevador Lacerda in honor of the father of the project. It was
reformed and acquired the actual “art deco” style, the mixes geometric and aerodynamic forms.
On the whole, 58 thousand passengers are transported every day on a 72 meter climb
between the PraçaTome de Souza in the Cidade Alta, to the Praça Cayru in the Cidade Baixa. The material used in the construction of the elevator
was brought from England and the special illumination helps to valorize the monument. |
Presentation
