It is worth noting that during the author’s lifetime, each new edition underwent rigorous revision, with updated bibliographies and the incorporation of the latest scientific interpretations—an example being the inclusion of developments in the study of the Etruscans in the volume on Rome. These books, originally intended as supplementary material for her students in Coimbra, have since become foundational textbooks for Classical Culture students throughout the Lusophone world. In the first volume, spanning over seven hundred pages, the author presents readers with the most complex problems of Greek antiquity, with rigorous and crystal-clear analysis. Topics range from the Homeric Question (one of her favoured themes, which she revisited and updated with pleasure in each edition) to the establishment of scientific and literary studies in the Hellenistic Period. Sublime chapters are devoted to literature, art, philosophy, religion, and the historical dynamics of cultural transmission. In the second volume, covering nearly six hundred pages, Rocha Pereira uses the same methodology and precision to examine fundamental milestones of Roman culture and literature, from the legends of Rome’s foundation to the pivotal figure of Augustus. A lengthy section is also dedicated to Roman moral and political ideas, which are essential for understanding their civili s ational legacy.

A significant part of M. H. da Rocha Pereira's scholarly output can be divided into two major categories: one dedicated to the history, culture, and literature—essentially, the cultural history—of the classical world, and the other focused on the reception of Classical Antiquity, particularly in Portuguese culture. From the first category, in addition to the works already mentioned, notable studies include those devoted to religion and myth in Ancient Greece, such as Concepções helénicas de felicidade no Além, de Homero a Platão [Hellenic Conceptions of Happiness in the Afterlife, from Homer to Plato] (1956) and No rasto das Amazonas [In the Trail of the Amazons] (1998); to archaic Greek poetry, such as Sobre a autenticidade do fragmento 44 Diehl de Anacreonte [On the Authenticity of Fragment 44 Diehl of Anacreon] (1962); to classical art, including Para a compreensão da arte grega [Towards an Understanding of Greek Art] (1985), O palácio, do mundo minóico ao helénico: mito e realidade [The Palace, from the Minoan to the Hellenic World: Myth and Reality] (1993–94), and O Zeus de Olímpia [The Zeus of Olympia] (2009); and to the history and literature of Ancient Rome, such as Entre a História e a Lenda: a figura de Viriato [Between History and Legend: The Figure of Viriathus] (2004) and Virgílio, poeta da paz e da missão de Roma [Virgil, Poet of Peace and Rome’s Mission] (1992). From the second category, noteworthy publications include Temas Clássicos na Poesia Portuguesa [Classical Themes in Portuguese Poetry] (1972), Novos Ensaios sobre Temas Clássicos na Poesia Portuguesa [New Essays on Classical Themes in Portuguese Poetry] (1988), and Portugal e a herança clássica e outros [Portugal and the Classical Heritage and Others] (2003). Her studies on medieval and modern culture should also be noted, such as Vida de S. Teotónio [Life of St. Teotonius] (1988), Nomes de ninfas em Camões [Names of Nymphs in Camões] (1980), and Vida e Milagres de São Rosendo e Vida de Santa Senhorinha [Life and Miracles of Saint Rosendo and Life of Saint Senhorinha] (1970). She was, moreover, an exceptional scholar of Camões. In all these works, M. H. da Rocha Pereira reveals a constant desire to understand and integrate cultural phenomena within their historical context, taking into account mental, geographical, and social structures, as well as the circumstances that inspired and explain cultural and political expressions. She sought to grasp the motivations of other eras and authors who repurposed classical heritage, rewriting or retransmitting it for their contemporaries. Her contributions extend to dictionary and encyclopaedia entries, including those for Verbo (404 entries), Logos (42 entries), and Biblos (18 entries); articles prepared for the Grande Dicionário de Literatura Portuguesa e Teoria Literária [Great Dictionary of Portuguese Literature and Literary Theory] by José João Cochofel (10 entries); as well as for the Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae (Basel–Paris) and the Dicionário Luís de Camões [Luís de Camões Dictionary].

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