Pincho Dolmen

Category: Archaeology > Dolmen

District: Portalegre > Castelo de Vide > Ribeiro de Anta

Location

Situated in the Alto Alentejo, in the Castelo de Vide region, the Anta do Pincho is located in a profoundly rural and tranquil environment, near the locality of Ribeiro de Anta. It is integrated into an open countryside landscape, characterized by silence and the natural sounds of the environment, such as the singing of birds or the whispering of the wind in the trees.

Its isolated position amidst this natural setting invites a pause and contemplation of the Alentejo landscape, offering a peaceful scenario for those seeking contact with nature and history.

The Megalithic Monument

The Anta do Pincho is an example of a megalithic monument, an ancient funerary structure built thousands of years ago. Originally, it would have been composed of seven large vertical granite stones, known as orthostats, which would form an elongated polygonal funerary chamber. It is believed that it also had an access corridor, oriented to the east.

Over time, the structure suffered significant damage, resulting in the state in which we find it today. Currently, only five of the original orthostats remain standing, although they are fractured. It is a vestige that shows the passage of millennia and the action of the elements on these ancestral constructions.

A Testament to Ancient History

This monument represents the human presence in the Alto Alentejo region from very remote times, preceding written history itself. Its construction probably dates back to the Neo-Chalcolithic period, placing its origin over four thousand years ago. It is a tangible link with the populations that inhabited and transformed this landscape in prehistory.

Visiting the Anta do Pincho allows for direct contact with a vestige of ancestral civilizations, an invitation to imagine the life, beliefs, and funerary rituals of those who lived here. Despite its ruined state, the dolmen retains a deep historical and symbolic value, serving as a landmark of a distant and fascinating past.

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