Iago Alvarenga

Love, Possession, Betrayal, Jealousy, Selfishness. And it is a reinterpretation of the traditional Stories of treasures buried during the War of the Triple Alliance, which deeply marked Brazil – especially the Pantanal people – since 1864. It is based on Alvarenga's manuscripts from when he lived among the Kadiwéu, Kinikinanau, in the village São João, between 2002 and 2004.

The Legend of the Paraguay War Legend tells that during the Paraguay War (1864-1870), families that lived near the border and soldiers who were leaving for battle used to hide their valuable belongings by burying them in secret spots, in order to safely recover them after the war. In several cases, though, the only people who knew about the secret spots of those personal treasures died before they could go back to recover them. According to inhabitants of that region, the spirits of those tormented men would reveal the location of those "buried and hidden" treasures to chosen people in their dreams, visions or by haunting them. "The Legend of the Paraguay War" approaches local legends in a historic and literary way. Those legends were born from within the biggest conflict in South America, and were developed and influenced by the local imaginary view of the world and which can be considered a relevant part of those people's identity up to this day