Recife Antigo (Old Recife) is the historical section of central Recife, consisting of the initial Portuguese settlement in the 16th century around the port. Sugar cane production from Pernambuco was delivered to Portugal through Recife's port. The first Synagogue built in the Americas, the Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue, is located in Recife Antigo, on Street of the Jews.

The Sculpture Park Francisco Brennand is a park built on a reef in front of the Marco Zero of Recife: it was built in the year 2000 as a commemorative landmark of the city of Recife for the 500 years of the Discovery of Brazil . There are 90 works by the sculptor and plastic artist Francisco Brennand from Pernambuco; the main work in the complex being the Crystal Column, 32-meter high and made of clay and bronze, popularly known as "Picão of the Brennand" because of its phallic form.

The Pernambuco House of Culture building is shaped as a cross, with three floors and converging into a central hall topped with metallic dome: it was built as a prison, inaugurated on April 14, 1976. Today, its old cells are occupied by craft shops, a bookstore and coffee shops. It is a space for concerts and regional folkloric representations, and also houses the Museum of Frevo.

Kahal Zur Israel is located in Recife, Brazil, and was the first Jewish congregation in the New World. It was established by Spanish/Portuguese Jews that had taken refuge in the Netherlands fleeing forced conversion, and were joined by New Christians who were already living in the colony. There is now a museum on this site of the oldest synagogue site in the Americas.