Granja Dolmen

Category: Archaeology > Dolmen

District: Portalegre > Marvão > Beirã > Pombais

Location

The Anta da Granja is located in the village of Beirã, in Pombais, municipality of Marvão, in the district of Portalegre. This site is set in a predominantly rural environment, characteristic of the Alentejo landscape, offering an experience of tranquility and direct contact with the surrounding nature.

Its position allows visitors to absorb the quietness of the countryside, where horizons stretch over gentle undulations, dotted with local vegetation and the ancient presence of rocks and outcrops, elements that are integrated into the history of the monument and the region itself.

Prehistoric Testimony

The Anta da Granja constitutes a remarkable testimony to human presence and funerary practices in the territory of Marvão during Prehistory. This type of monument is a megalithic construction dating back to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods, eras when prehistoric communities erected these imposing structures for the collective burial of their dead.

Observing the Anta da Granja allows for an immersion into a distant past, inviting reflection on the beliefs, rituals, and social organization of the populations who inhabited this region several millennia ago, leaving their indelible mark on the landscape.

Megalithic Architecture

As an example of megalithic architecture, the Anta da Granja demonstrates the remarkable skill and effort of ancient communities in manipulating large stone blocks. Although each dolmen has its particularities, the basic structure generally consists of a burial chamber, formed by large vertical stones, known as orthostats, which supported one or more considerably sized capstones.

Originally, these structures were often covered by an artificial mound of earth and small stones, known as a tumulus or burial mound, which, over the centuries, may have disintegrated or disappeared, revealing the impressive underlying stone structure.

Symbolism and Natural Setting

Beyond their primary function as a burial site, dolmens held deep symbolism for the communities that built them. They served as landmarks in the landscape, territorial markers, and sites of collective memory, integrating into a complex system of values and rituals of the time.

The Anta da Granja thus offers not only insight into the constructive capacity of our ancestors but also an opportunity to appreciate the integration of these grand works with the natural environment. A visit to it is an invitation to contemplate the connection between humans, the landscape, and the deep history of Alentejo, in a place where time seems to have slowed down.

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