Tapir

Category: Archaeology > Dolmen

District: Évora > Viana do Alentejo > Aguiar > Anta de Aguiar

Location

The dolmen is located in the village of Aguiar, in the municipality of Viana do Alentejo. It is situated close to the village's urban perimeter, making it easily accessible for visitors to Aguiar.

A Testament to the Past

This megalithic structure is a dolmen, a type of collective funerary monument dating back to the Neolithic period, approximately 5000 to 6000 years ago. Its existence in Aguiar is one of the oldest indications of human presence in the Viana do Alentejo region, marking a crucial phase in history when communities began to settle the land and organize themselves more permanently. The dolmen is, therefore, a symbol of the beginning of local settlement.

Architectural Characteristics

The architecture of this dolmen consists of a polygonal burial chamber, built with large vertical stones, known as orthostats. Originally, these monuments were covered by an artificial mound of earth and stones, known as a mamoa or tumulus. In the case of the Aguiar dolmen, its current structure still allows for observation of the arrangement of the chamber's orthostats and traces of a possible access corridor. The stone that would have served as the chamber's capstone or "table" is currently displaced, lying next to the rest of the structure. The presence of the mamoa sometimes symbolized the "womb of the woman," reflecting ancestral beliefs in the continuity of life after death.

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt