Customs
Top photo: Francisco Arrais
The largest and most important customs unit in the country, with jurisdiction over 24 municipalities (from Bertioga to the border with Paraná), the Customs House operates inside a building of 12,350m², eclectic in architectural style, with Art-deco influences, inaugurated in 1934. Responsible for controlling 34% of Brazil’s foreign trade, the Santos customs division, created in 1550, was the third to operate in the country – the first was in Salvador (BA) and the second, in São Vicente (SP).
The building
A municipal heritage site, the building was constructed over a period of four years. The ground floor is faced with granite, and there are more than 90 windows, 66 of them protected by iron grilles with designs imitating coffee cherries and leaves, repeated on the six doors and two main gates. In all, there are more than 44,000 kilos of iron in the decorative details alone. Inside, pilasters and stairs in imported marble, which also forms a six-pointed star on the floor; fine chandeliers, frescos; stained glass windows and a dome bearing the National Coat of Arms.
Photo: Francisco Arrais
Counterfeit Museum
The Counterfeit Museum houses a collection of counterfeit goods confiscated in the Port of Santos: bags, trainers, watches, among other products, many of them imitating well-known brands.
Photo: Francisco Arrais