Scientific Committee of Exploration: an experience of transition in Brazilian scientific practice

Abstract

In its time, the Scientific Committee of Exploration knew the glory of being the first expedition formed exclusively by Brazilians naturalists, destined to find in Ceará materials and techniques which may accelerate the march of civilization in Brazilian Empire — but it soon turned into reproach as an ill-fated, expensive and useless initiative. The legacy of this exploratory trip went decades without raising interest among researchers. In recent years, even taken by academic studies, the topic is still remembered more for its anecdotal content and its pejorative nicknames, and almost invariably coming to conclusion that it was a project that did not meet expectations and investments. In addition to undertake a critical review of the interpretations of the expedition to the northern provinces, I would like to address here the experience of the Scientific Commission within the possibilities and limits the use of science as an intellectual arm of the development of the Empire, a country that sought to deal with the colonial legacy and, at the same time, establish themselves as modern and civilized nation, able to take the knowledge of its own territory.