After a brief reference to the history of the Municipal Public Library of Porto, the authors provide a list of the main manuscripts concerning Brazil. Though not a voluminous collection, it is considered very valuable from a qualitative perspective. Its bulk is formed by codices and maps belonging to the captain-general of 'Cuiabá' and 'Mato Grosso', the 1st viscount of Balsemão, (as well as to his son) and others which used to belong to Manuel Francisco da Silva e Veiga Magro de Moura (Arcadian name: Sílvio Mondânio), former judge at the High Court in Rio de Janeiro.
