%0 Journal Article %T O mapa das cortes e as fronteiras do Brasil %A Cintra %A Jorge Pimentel %J Boletim de Ci¨ºncias Geod¨¦sicas %D 2012 %I Scientific Electronic Library Online %R 10.1590/S1982-21702012000300005 %X the formation of our borders are analyzed, at first presenting the question of the demarcation line of tordesillas and the problems that led to the abandonment of this trace to adopt a configuration thatwould deal with both the actual possession of the territory (uti possidetis) as the natural borders formed by rivers and water borders. next, the map of the courts is examined, having served as the basis for the treaty of madrid, and it determines, actually, the current configuration of our country. an analysis is made of this cartographic document, with the aid of digital cartography, which yieldeds in the quantity of existing distortions, to modeled its trait and found out how it was built. %K historic cartography %K map of the courts %K tordesillas treaty %K digital cartography applied to historical maps. %U http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S1982-21702012000300005&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en