Dolmen of Carniçosas

Category: Culture and Entertainment > Museum

District: Coimbra > Figueira da Foz > Alhadas > Carniçosas

Location and Natural Setting

The Carniçosas Dolmen is located in the parish of Alhadas, in the municipality of Figueira da Foz, nestled in the landscape of the Alhadas Mountains. This archaeological site stands on a hill that is, in itself, an ancient mamoa, an artificial funerary mound. Its position on a rural slope of the mountain offers an environment of tranquility and contact with nature, highlighting the integration of these millennial structures into the surrounding natural landscape.

A Megalithic Legacy

Dating back to the Megalithic period, with an estimated age of about six millennia, the Carniçosas Dolmen is a prehistoric funerary monument that bears witness to the presence and practices of the communities that inhabited this region in remote times. Recognized for its historical importance, it was classified as a National Monument in 1910. Its secrets were unveiled at the end of the 19th century by archaeologist António dos Santos Rocha, whose investigations provided a better understanding of this remarkable legacy.

The Ancestral Architecture

The construction of the Carniçosas Dolmen reveals the ingenuity of its builders. The monument is composed of an atrium, an access corridor, and a main funerary chamber. One can observe the corridor, defined by large stone slabs arranged in two parallel rows extending for approximately 4.50 meters. At the end of the corridor, the funerary chamber appears, polygonal in shape and about 3 meters in diameter, delimited by five robust slabs. This site served as a collective tomb, and remnants of artifacts and human remains discovered here are currently housed in the Municipal Museum of Figueira da Foz.