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Sites j_iglar has logged. View this log as a table or view the most recent logs from everyone
Menir de Aspradantes
Date Added: 11th Dec 2022
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir)
Country: Portugal
Visited: Yes on 3rd Oct 2022. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 5 Access 3
Menir de Aspradantes submitted by j_iglar on 11th Dec 2022. Menir de Aspradantes is a solitary menhir on a ridge overlooking green fields. (I particularly enjoyed the juxtaposition of the menhir overlooking the modern turbines on distant ridges!)
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Log Text: This is a lovely individual stone, standing about 1.5m tall. It's on a ridge, with great views around the countryside. You have to climb up to the ridge, which is a bit strenuous but not dangerous or too difficult. If you follow Google maps, it takes you to the dirt road below, on which parking a car can be difficult: it's a narrow road on a hillside with limited spaces to pull off. Find a spot, scan the hill for a reasonable gradient and go for a walk. Along the ridge the walking is easy and you can enjoy the views of the hills and farms and wind turbines while you look for the menhir.
There's more detailed information on the Portuguese Wikipedia entry: https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menir_de_Aspradantes
Anta Da Comenda Grande
Date Added: 25th Jun 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Évora)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2024. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 4
Anta Da Comenda Grande submitted by TheCaptain on 6th Nov 2019. I was able to get decent views of the dolmen from a few vantage points and with a zoom lens.
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Log Text: It's not terribly famous, or even archaeologically significant. But it's a lovely little spot. I got there around sunset and the golden light, the tinkling of the cowbells, the peace and quiet of the cork oak trees... it was magical.
I recorded a short video ...check out the comments!
Anta da Masmorra
Date Added: 28th Apr 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Faro)
Visited: Yes on 29th Dec 2022. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 4
Anta da Masmorra submitted by motist on 24th May 2016. Anta da Masmorra
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Log Text: The signposts for the dolmen are sunburned beyond reading and totally ruined. The stones persist!
Silves Archaeological Museum
Date Added: 20th May 2024
Site Type: Museum
Country: Portugal (Faro)
Visited: Yes on 11th May 2024. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 5
Silves Archaeological Museum submitted by Klingon on 28th Sep 2010.
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Log Text: This is a fabulous museum, with loads of prehistoric artefacts. There are exhibits from paleolithic to more or less modern period. The building has a cistern well from the Islamic period which has been designated as a National Monument. It's well worth a visit!
Menir da Vilarinha 3
Date Added: 20th May 2024
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir)
Country: Portugal (Faro)
Visited: Yes on 11th May 2024. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 5 Access 3
Menir da Vilarinha 3 submitted by Klingon on 29th Sep 2010.
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Log Text: It's an interesting menhir and part of a fascinating alignment, BUT it's not the original. This one was moved from another location (it was originally Vilarinha 5), and the original Vilarinha 3 is now in the museum in Silves. The original was very ornately carved and it was deemed that preservation in the museum was in the public's best interest. You can read more about it on my post about the Vilarinha Alignment.
Menir da Vilarinha 4
Date Added: 20th May 2024
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir)
Country: Portugal (Faro)
Visited: Yes on 11th May 2024. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4
Menir da Vilarinha 4 submitted by Klingon on 29th Sep 2010.
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Log Text: This is the easiest to get to of the Vilarinha alignment. Start at the hamlet of Gregórios and there's a sign on the tarmac road. You can see the menir from the road: it's at the top of a hill near an electricity pole.
Anta da Estria
Date Added: 27th Jan 2023
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 27th Jan 2023. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 2
Anta da Estria submitted by Magalhaes on 26th Apr 2006. Anta da Estria
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Log Text: The site is in the same condition as in the photographs and previous accounts. It was well preserved when the motorway went through and the site itself is pleasant and peaceful, if you tune out the noise of the passing cars. The access, however, is very difficult. The motorway exit to the service station and parking area is closed and barricaded. You cannot access the site from there any longer. The only way is to go to the nearby Monte de Abraão area (past the nearby Anta de Monte de Abraão) and take the pedestrian bridge over the motorway. Across the bridge there is a gravel footpath which has become overgrown with bushes and brambles. If you force your way through them, you'll come to a fence surrounding the service station. There is a doorway but the door is locked. Someone has cut away the top portion of the door and it is possible to climb through the hole. Once through, it is easy to reach the Anta da Estria.
Anta do Monte Abraão
Date Added: 27th Jan 2023
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 27th Jan 2023. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 4
Anta do Monte Abraão submitted by Magalhaes on 26th Apr 2006. Anta do Monte Abraão
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Log Text: If you visit this site expecting a pristine antique experience, you will be sadly disappointed. If, however, you visit the site knowing that there will be graffiti and the hills are crossed by powerlines (be aware that the site is on a hill above a major motorway), then the juxtaposition of ancient and modern is quite interesting. It's in a hilly park beside a reasonably well populated area, and people grow vegetables on the edge of the park, walk their dogs through the park, etc. Appreciate that for many people this ancient site is simply a fixture in their everyday environment. While walking around the site, take a look at the surroundings: besides the power lines and apartment blocks you can see Pena Palace on the far Sintra hills, you can see the Monument Natural de Carenque (site of many dinossaur footprints) arching over the motorway, and if you know where to look you can see across to the hill where the Anta da Pedra dos Mouros (or Anta de Senhor da Serra) is.
Anta da Agualva
Date Added: 28th Nov 2023
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 5th Feb 2023. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 5
Anta da Agualva submitted by Bak_teria on 3rd Sep 2014. Side view. The upright stone pillars are in very bad shape.
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Log Text: The site and park were greatly remodeled and improved in 2017 by the City Council of Sintra. It is now a very pleasant, clean and enjoyable park. The anta has been properly excavated, with the orthostats lifted, and it sits shining in a bed of white stones. There is a wooden boardwalk around it, with benches and descriptive signs in Portuguese and English. It is a wonderful example of an urban prehistoric site.
Dólmen de Monte Serves
Date Added: 27th Apr 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 27th Apr 2024. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 3
Dólmen de Monte Serves submitted by Bak_teria on 17th Sep 2014. The small dolmen shaped tomb. At the site is still visible part of the tumulus.
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Log Text: The road that gets you close is a bit rocky in places. It's passable but clearance is very helpful. The dolmen is easily accessible by a track and is situated on a beautiful hillside overlooking Lisboa and the Rio Tejo.
Necrópole de Carenque
Date Added: 27th Apr 2024
Site Type: Rock Cut Tomb
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 27th Apr 2024. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4
Necrópole de Carenque submitted by Bak_teria on 1st Sep 2014. This is the last and the bigger of all the three caves and unlike the others who are facing the southeast, this one is directed to the west.
It had unique features. When it was unearthed in 1932 this cave was initiated by a type of circular vestibule, with open walls in limestone facing on one side and down the hall, partly made of thin slabs, linked with clay and superimposed on the rocky bank. The corridor was covered with slabs laid in a recess of the upper edge of the right side. ...
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Log Text: A lovely site. Quiet and pleasant. The small museum has information in Portuguese and relics from the excavation of the site. The three caves are easy to walk around and see inside.
Anta das Pedras Grandes
Date Added: 27th Apr 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 27th Apr 2024. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 4 Access 5
Anta das Pedras Grandes submitted by Bak_teria on 1st Jan 2015. A good view of the remains of this big urban megalithic monument. This is Pedras Grandes in 2015.
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Log Text: The area around the anta (dolmen) has been cleaned up and made into an urban park. It's a pretty location and allows the people in the area to enjoy the site.
Grutas do Poço Velho
Date Added: 3rd Jun 2024
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 25th May 2024. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 5
Grutas do Poço Velho submitted by j_iglar on 3rd Jun 2024. The entrance to the caves in the centre of the town of Cascais
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Log Text: The caves are fun to go through and reasonably easy. The floor is paved with wood, so it's relatively easy, but there are sections that are very narrow and some that are very low. You have to crouch or crawl (I'm tall, so I crawled!) and if you have claustrophobia you should NOT go in! The artefacts that were found here are housed in the Town Museum of Cascais, which is a short walk away.
You can read more on my website, Prehistoric Portugal
Tholos do Barro
Date Added: 18th Mar 2025
Site Type: Chambered Tomb
Country: Portugal (Lisboa)
Visited: Yes on 14th Mar 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 4
Tholos do Barro submitted by Bak_teria on 11th Sep 2014. Front view from the corridor of the Tholos
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Log Text: An impressive monument with an incredible view! The chamber is enormous, about 6m across. It's well worth visiting the museum in the town of Torres Vedras (only 4km away) to see many artefacts and a 3d model of it as it (likely) looked when it was built.
More information & photos & videos on Prehistoric Portugal.
Anta Morenos 3
Date Added: 18th Sep 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Portalegre)
Visited: Yes on 16th Jun 2024. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 4
Anta Morenos 3 submitted by j_iglar on 17th Jun 2024. Site in Portalegre Portugal
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Log Text: An interesting dolmen made from schist stone - fairly small as dolmens go, but bigger than other schist structures.
It's easy to get to if you use a GPS or online map and don't mind walking. It's a few kilometers along dirt tracks (some navigable by car, others less so), with no signs. I took a guided walk with an archaeologist from nearby Avis and it was easy to get to, but I wouldn't want to try to retrace my steps alone!
Read more on my Prehistoric Portugal website.
Anta Morenos 1
Date Added: 18th Sep 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Portalegre)
Visited: Yes on 16th Jun 2024. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 3 Access 4
Anta Morenos 1 submitted by j_iglar on 17th Jun 2024. Site in Portalegre Portugal
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Log Text: An interesting site. It's been pretty much broken apart by both humans and the big tree growing through it. It's now used as a sheep pen. Some beautiful schist stones.
Getting to it requires a GPS or online map. There are no signs or directions. The roads are dirt tracks: easy to walk, but with some hills, and mostly navigable by car. I took a guided walk with an archaeologist from Avis, and it was a great trip.
Read more on my Prehistoric Portugal website.
Anta-Capela de Alcobertas
Date Added: 25th Mar 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Santarém)
Visited: Yes on 25th Mar 2024. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 5
Anta-Capela de Alcobertas submitted by Bak_teria on 19th Aug 2015. A view from the outside. This christianized anta is a wonderful example of the mix between paganism and christianism.
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Log Text: This is a beautiful fusion of ancient and modern. Even my long-suffering family appreciated the trip to see this dolmen/chapel! It's a beautiful church, and the chapel is gorgeous. As a "prehistoric site" it might be a disappointment to a purist, but for me it is absolutely lovely!
Antas do Caminho da Fanica
Date Added: 22nd Jun 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Santarém)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2024. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 4
Antas do Caminho da Fanica submitted by Bak_teria on 20th Oct 2014. Another view of Anta Pequena.
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Log Text: This is a lovely pair of tombs, lying on either side of the N2, Portugal's iconic National Road #2. You can easily get to the Anta Pequena (small) as the fence now has an unlocked gate (you have to untie the rope fastener - make sure you retie it when you leave!). The Anta Grande (large) is still behind a fence with no gate.
More details and photos on Prehistoric Portugal
Anta de Vale Beiró
Date Added: 22nd Jun 2024
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: Portugal (Santarém)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2024. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 4
Anta de Vale Beiró submitted by Bak_teria on 20th Oct 2014. View of the dolmen from the side of the road.
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Log Text: A beautiful dolmen, right alongside the N2. It's easy to walk to and there's an unlocked gate in the fence. (Untie the rope fastener to get in: just make sure you close it behind you when you leave!)
More details and photos on Prehistoric Portugal