"Portugal has lost one of its greatest historians and curators of national memory. Professor José Mattoso was a brilliant thinker, internationally recognised, who considered history to be "the basis of knowledge of the human condition", and who himself contributed in a remarkable way to the history of our University, and in particular to the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities", underlined the Rector of NOVA de Lisboa, João Sàágua, upon hearing the news of José Mattoso's disappearance. One of the greatest names in Portuguese historiography and a specialist in the medieval history of Portugal, he was 90 years old.
Retired after many years as a professor in the History Department of NOVA FCSH, José Mattoso played an important role both in the initial phase and in the consolidation of our Faculty and the prestige it acquired both in the country and abroad.
He contributed to the training of several generations of students, researchers and teachers at NOVA FCSH through the History Degree, the creation of the Master's Degree in Medieval History and the supervision of doctoral theses. He was a member of the Installation Commission (1977-1982), President of the Scientific Council (1984) and Director of the Faculty (1986-1987), as well as Vice-Rector of the Universidade Nova (1991-1995). After retiring from teaching, he also played a decisive role in the creation of the Institute of Medieval Studies, as director of the online magazine Medievalista.
Outside the Faculty, he has held several official positions: Coordinator of the Commission for the Reform and Restructuring of the National Archives of Torre do Tombo (1986-1988), President of the Portuguese Archives Institute (1988-1990), Director of the National Archives Institute / Torre do Tombo (1996-1998) and Vice-President of the Superior Council of Archives (1999). In these positions, he played a fundamental role in the renewal of the national archival policy and the consequent implementation of practices in line with the most recent international guidelines on the preservation and accessibility of documentary heritage.
He has received numerous awards in recognition of his scientific and cultural work, among which the Augusto Botelho da Costa Veiga Prize, awarded by the Portuguese Academy of History (1982), and the Alfredo Pimenta Medieval History Prize, awarded by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
He has received numerous awards in recognition of his scientific and cultural activities, including the Augusto Botelho da Costa Veiga Prize from the Portuguese Academy of History (1982), the Alfredo Pimenta Medieval History Prize from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (1985), the Pen Club Essay Award (1986), the Pessoa Prize from the Expresso/Unisys newspaper (1987), the Prix Böhus-Szögyény of the Confédération Internationale de Généalogie et d'Héraldique (1991), the Latin Trophy of the União Latina (2007), the Prémio Árvore da Vida - Padre Manuel Antunes of the National Secretariat for Cultural Pastoral (2019), and the Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Lisbon (1998).
NOVA sends its deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues.