Maria Do Carmo Geronimo

Maria Do Carmo Geronimo
Born	March 5, 1871(1871-03-05)? Brazil
Died	June 14, 2000(2000-06-14) (aged &10000000000000129000000129 years, &10000000000000101000000101 days?) Brazil
Height	4'0"(122cm)

Maria Do Carmo Geronimo (March 5, 1871? – June 14, 2000) claimed to have been the last Brazilian slave. Born in Brazil at the claimed date of March 5, 1871, she died on June 14, 2000 at the claimed age of &10000000000000129000000129 years, &10000000000000101000000101 days.

Age claim

Though her age was never validated, Maria do Carmo was popular in the press in the 1990s. She was often shown with Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment ("Women in the 120s") or at Carnival. In August 1997, she was featured in Time Magazine following the death of Calment (listing potential claimants to the 'world's oldest person' title).

Historical claim

Historians note that even though Brazil didn't abolish slavery until 1888, a law passed in June 1871 required that children born to slaves henceforward would be free. Thus, it was possible her age was exaggerated to make her 'legal' as a slave. On the other hand, Maria claimed to still have whip marks on her back, and slavery was abolished in Brazil in 1888—when she would have been 17 years old, if born in 1871. Proponents of her claim point out that if she had been much younger, she wouldn't have been whipped.

See also

• Longevity claims

References

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/793515.stm
• http://english.people.com.cn/english/200006/16/eng20000616_43177.html

Persondata
Name	Geronimo, Maria Do Carmo
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	March 5, 1871?
Place of birth	Brazil
Date of death	2000-6-14
Place of death	Brazil