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The Pelourinho (Pillory) of Bragança is one of the oldest in the country and matches a type peculiar to the Northeast. A symbol of autonomy and the power of the nobility, the granite pig base dates back to pre-history (500 BC) on which rests a 12th or 13th century column with its upper section carved.

The Lusitanian berrão, known as the "Pig of the Town", was a religious shrine to the primitive agricultural-pastoral peoples of Trás-os-Montes. The incidence of this type of sculpture across Portugal, and some examples from over the border in Salamanca, has enabled them to be attributed to a pre-Celtic people belonging to the Vetons. The pig took on a mythical, protective dimension and was normally located at the entranceway to settlements.

The ornamentation at the top of the column is unique with its four stone arms forming a cross that was usually made out of iron and attached by rings. They would serve as the gallows for public executions. At the top, completing the pillory, there is a human figure holding a shield with the city´s coat-of-arms.

On the site of the Pillory, originally placed in front of the Domus Municipalis, there was the former Church of Sant´Iago.