The Mehinako indigenous people live in the Upper Xingú Amazon region, covered by the Xingú Indigenous Park, which is considered the largest and one of the most famous reserves of its kind in the world. They speak the Arawak language and today number around 300 people, less than 25% of the number described by the first explorer who had contact with the Mehinako people, at the end of the 19th century (1884), the German Karl von den Steinen.

In the mid-1950s, the Mehinako indigenous population left their oldest village, in the Tuatuari River region, due to conflicts with other indigenous groups, and moved to join the region later called the Xingú Indigenous National Park. In the 1980s, dozens of indigenous people died from outbreaks of flu and measles, significantly reducing their population and also making them dependent on medical support from “whites”. The Mehinako have maintained and passed on their traditions to new generations, the main one being a large funeral event known as Kwarup.

Excellent artisans, the Mehinako preserve their traditional artifacts. It is up to the men to make the wooden benches (used in the festivities), oars, masks and beijú paddles (used to prepare one of their main foods), in addition to the final tying of the baskets. The women harvest, prepare and color the buriti palm threads (straw used in braiding), the nets, the baskets and mats.