The Igreja Nossa Senhora do Rosário, built in the 1730s, anchors the main square of Pirenópolis and is the oldest church in the state of Goiás. It's a simple, whitewashed colonial church in the pattern common across eighteenth-century Brazil — broad and low, with twin towers and thick walls — but its setting on a cobblestone square surrounded by period buildings gives it real presence.
The church is the focal point of the Festa do Divino Espírito Santo and several other religious festivals throughout the year. The interior is modest compared to the baroque extravagances of Minas Gerais churches, but the building itself is historically significant and the square in front of it is one of the most pleasant places in town to sit in the late afternoon when the light goes golden and the heat eases.