Anta of Fonte Coberta

Category: Archaeology > Dolmen

District: Vila Real > Alijó > Vila Chã > Fonte Coberta

Location

The Anta de Fonte Coberta is located in a rural area, on the Chã Plateau, in the locality of Vila Chã, belonging to the municipality of Alijó. This ancestral monument stands isolated in the midst of nature, surrounded by pine forest and low-lying vegetation, offering a serene environment conducive to contemplation. Its position on the terrain allows for a tranquil immersion in the Douro landscape, inviting the discovery of a place with deeply rooted history.

Testament to Remote Epochs

This imposing megalithic monument is a valuable vestige of Portuguese prehistory, dating from the megalithic era, a period when communities used large stones to build structures for funerary purposes. The Anta de Fonte Coberta originally served as a burial chamber, a site of collective burial that reflects the beliefs and rituals of the populations who inhabited these lands thousands of years ago. Its historical and cultural importance was officially recognized in 1910, when it was classified as a National Monument, safeguarding its preservation for future generations.

Architecture and Ancestral Art

The structure of the Anta de Fonte Coberta is composed of seven large granite orthostats forming a polygonal chamber, culminating in a remarkable capstone. This capstone, measuring approximately three and a half by two meters, bears enigmatic engravings known as cup marks, small holes carved into the stone, whose meaning still generates debate among archaeologists today. In addition to these marks, some of the dolmen's orthostats bear traces of grooves and even of red-colored paintings, pointing to the presence of rock art that adorned these ancestral constructions. A small access corridor, once more complete and extending eastward, can also be observed. This dolmen was originally covered by an earth and stone mound, known as a mamoa (burial mound), of which some vestiges can still be seen around the dolmen, demonstrating the grandeur and complexity of the work in its time.

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