Casa de Câmara e Cadeia, Portuguese colonial municipal building in Caucaia, Brazil.
Casa de Câmara e Cadeia is a two-story building with a rectangular layout, featuring stone walls on the ground floor and brick masonry on the upper level. The structure now functions as the Professor Martinz de Aguiar Municipal Library and houses a collection of literature and research materials.
The building was constructed in 1781 and originally served as both a town council chamber and a prison, as was typical for Portuguese colonial administration in Brazil. This dual function was characteristic of Portuguese administrative buildings in overseas colonies.
The building displays Portuguese architectural features in its structure and now serves the local community as a library. The way it functions in the town center reflects its role as a public gathering space.
The building is located in central Caucaia and is easy to reach on foot when exploring the town center. Visitors can enter the library spaces and view the architectural details of both the interior and exterior of the historic structure.
The main facade has asymmetrical window and door openings that are not centrally aligned, an unexpected feature for a formal administrative building. The roof concludes with a distinctive Portuguese-style eave design that gives the structure its recognizable appearance.
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