at a glance

gamboa is a neighborhood located in central rio de janeiro, within the port administrative region. it is situated in the harbor area of guanabara bay, bordered by the neighborhoods of santo cristo, saúde, and centro.

in colonial times the region now known as gamboa neighborhood rural area, with forests and swamps, where the local fishermen built small dikes, locally called 'gamboas', to help them capture the fish. the name of the current neighborhood comes from this simple fact.

by the end of the colonial era the region would be a known home for the brazilian aristocracy, and in 1815 it received what is now the oldest graveyard in rio de janeiro, the british burial ground. the neighborhood developed further during the middle of the 19th century.