4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto
Item
Country
PT
Name of institution (English)
Porto District Archive
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
por
Contact information: postal address
Rua das Taipas 90, 4050-598 Porto
Contact information: phone number
00351 220046200
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
http://www.adporto.dglab.gov.pt/
Reference number
PT/ADPRT/NOT/CNPRT04
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
4th Notarial Office of Porto
Title (official language of the state)
4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto
Language of title
por
Creator / accumulator
4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto
Date(s)
1546/1922
Language(s)
por
Extent
34.17 linear metres (1,072 books and 312 bundles)
Type of material
Textual Material
Physical condition
Poor
Scope and content
This fonds comprises documentation that resulted from the activity of the 4th Notarial Office of Porto. Besides public deeds, wills, certifications, the fonds also contains trade records since the 16th century, which witness the flourishing trade in the Early Modern Porto and the commercial networks in which merchants of the city took part. In the 16th and 17th centuries, New Christian merchants were a significant part of the mercantile elite of Porto who operated in the Atlantic trade. Therefore, records from the 4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto fonds, in particular the 3rd series, testify the activity of New Christian traders and businessmen, such as Bento Fernandes, Simão Vaz, Domingos Lopes Vitória, Miguel Gomes Bravo, Diogo Henriques or Simão Lopes Torres. The businesses of the Porto New Christian mercantile elite spread over the Atlantic islands, Brazil and North European commercial centres such as Antwerp, Amsterdam, or cities of Southwestern France. Therefore, these notarial records also contain evidence on the economic and social relations between Portuguese New Christians and Portuguese Jews in the diaspora communities. Amândio Barros transcribed most of the records from the 16th century in the second volume of his PhD thesis (2004), which is available online.
Archival history
Initially, the notarial archives were under the custody of the notary himself. After the implantation of the Republic in Portugal in 1910, the records began to be transferred to the National Archives. Following the creation of district archives as of 1916, the notarial fonds were gradually relocated to these new institutions. At present, the Portuguese legislation stipulates that notarial records older than 30 years should be transferred to the Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo or the respective District Archive.
In 1931, the Arquivo Distrital do Porto was founded. The 4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto (formerly, the 1.º Cartório Notarial do Porto, PO-1º) was incorporated on July 12, 1932, by the notary Eduardo dos Santos Maia Mendes.
In 1931, the Arquivo Distrital do Porto was founded. The 4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto (formerly, the 1.º Cartório Notarial do Porto, PO-1º) was incorporated on July 12, 1932, by the notary Eduardo dos Santos Maia Mendes.
Administrative / Biographical history
The term "notário" (notary) was only established by law in 1899 and replaced the designation "tabelião", the person responsible for recording every public instrument - an office that dated back to the 13th century at least.
The Decree of 23 December 1899 created thirteen notarial offices in the "comarca" (district) of Porto, seven of them in the city. A new division occurred in 1928, with the implementation of fifteen notarial offices in the district (eight in the city of Porto). On 19 December 1949, a new Decree instituted nine offices in the city.
The 4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto was previously the first notarial office of the "comarca", whose fonds had the designation of PO-1º.
The Decree of 23 December 1899 created thirteen notarial offices in the "comarca" (district) of Porto, seven of them in the city. A new division occurred in 1928, with the implementation of fifteen notarial offices in the district (eight in the city of Porto). On 19 December 1949, a new Decree instituted nine offices in the city.
The 4.º Cartório Notarial do Porto was previously the first notarial office of the "comarca", whose fonds had the designation of PO-1º.
Access points: locations
Access points: persons, families
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
System of arrangement
Records are arranged chronologically. The first digit of the reference number of the storage units identifies the "old series" to which they formerly belonged. For instance, the former 3rd series (which comprises most of the records with material related to New Christian merchants in the 16th and 17th centuries) is identified as PT/ADPRT/NOT/CNPRT04/003/.
Access, restrictions
Access to the records is conditioned by their state of conservation.
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2021
Bibliography
Published primary sources
Linked resources
Filter by property
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Arquivo Distrital do Porto | Collections (official language of the state) |