Marco Padrão, Memorial on Pedras do Mato islet in São Vicente, Brazil

Marco Padrão is a monument on the Pedras do Mato islet, facing the Biquinha de Anchieta spring at the foot of Morro dos Barbosas in São Vicente. It consists of a cylindrical shaft, a symbol of immortality, topped by a four-sided prism bearing four shields: 16th-century Portugal, Martim Afonso de Souza, the Order of Christ and the Brazilian homeland.

The memorial was built in 1933 to mark the 400th anniversary of São Vicente's founding and honors Portuguese navigator Martim Afonso de Souza's arrival in 1532. The construction linked two significant milestones in the region's past.

The four shields on the prism name the layers of the site's story: 16th-century Portugal, Martim Afonso de Souza, the Order of Christ and the Brazilian Homeland. The monument stands facing the Biquinha de Anchieta, the spring where Jesuit José de Anchieta is said to have catechized Indigenous people.

The monument stands on the Pedras do Mato islet, facing the Biquinha de Anchieta spring at the foot of Morro dos Barbosas, so it is seen from the shore rather than entered. The spring and the hill base are reached on foot from the São Vicente waterfront.

The memorial features four distinct shields representing 16th-century Portugal, Martim Afonso de Souza, the Order of Christ, and Brazil. These four symbols make it a distinctive spot where different cultures and eras converge in one structure.