The almotaçaria, one of most long-term institutions of portuguese cities, was ignored by historiography for a long time. This article has by purpose to rescue almotaçaria as a historic theme. It wonders to demonstrate that three basic attributions of almotaçaria rights (market, sanitary and building controls) show the deepest meaning of the urban. The science of politics has told that Modern State borns through advance and enlargement of Kingãs administrative fields. However, the study of almotaçaria rights may drives to the conclusion that public policies state emerges from appropriation of county administrative attributions.
Almotaçaria rights; Portugal; colonial Brazil