Historical Archive

The Historical Archive holds the documentation that testifies to the organic structure, functions, and activities of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa throughout its multi-century institutional journey.

With the great earthquake of 1755 and the violent fire that worsened, the Misericórdia of Lisbon preserved a large part of its heritage and documentation. For this reason, documents from the mid-18th century to the present day are mainly preserved in the Historical Archive.

The historical documentation of the institution, conditioned around six linear kilometers of shelves, is mainly provided by documents on paper, parchment, photographs, and sound recordings.

The Historical Archive also ensures the preservation and technical treatment of the collection of Ancient Books of the Santa Casa (15th to 18th centuries), consisting of a significant set of typesetting from Portuguese and foreign typography, totaling around 5000 titles, originating from the old bookstores of the Misericórdia of Lisbon, from the Convent of São Pedro de Alcântara or from the House of the Marquises of Alegrete. This bibliographic collection is cataloged, with the set of works with  musical texts (manuscripts and printed)  were the target of a specific catalog.