Also known as: Dólmen da Pedra Branca, Monument Megalitico da Pedra Branca Walk around the boardwalk and look down at the stones. Their regular placement shows human work. Think about the four and a half thousand years that separate you from their original builders. Did the builders choose this hilly …
Also known as: Anta da Herdade do Barrocal, Anta da Herdade do Barrocal 1 Standing tall in a cow pasture in the heart of the Évora “Megalithic Universe,” this massive and beautiful megalithic chambered structure is an impressive sight. This anta is a large construction: 2.3m high and about 3m …
Under the bright blue Alentejo sky, the stone pillar points straight up to heaven. Walk around it, feel the solid stone under your fingertips. Realize that multiple millennia ago, people carved this stone into a spear-shaped phallus and planted it upright into the soil. A human erection thrusting to the …
Also known as: Anta das Tapadas do Pincho Standing in a pasture in the middle of the Alto Alentejo, the silence all around you is almost palpable. The railway line nearby has long since been abandoned. The dirt track gets little, if any, traffic. The cows are elsewhere. There’s nothing …
Walk across the field, scanning the area for cows or other residents. Enjoy the view across the fields to the hilltop town of Castelo de Vide. Feel the wind in your face as you walk through the low meadowland. As you reach the top of the small rise, the stones …
Also known as: Anta da Nave do Grou As the wind blows across the meadow, it carries the sound of hissing traffic on the nearby road as well as the tinkling of bells of the cows in the pasture. The grass on the mound wavers in the wind all around …
Also known as: Monumento funerário eneolítico do Barro Stand beside the shrine of Nossa Senhora da Pena (“Our Lady of Pity” or “Sorrows” …or possibly “Our Lady of the Rock”) and admire the view all around the hill: the town of Torres Vedras, farmland and smaller villages, the valleys on …
Just off the pleasant Jardim da Graça in central Torres Vedras stands the gorgeous convent of Nossa Senhora da Graça. Just to the right of the church and the clock tower, a large blue sign beckons you to visit the Museu Municipal Leonel Trindade. When you drag yourself away from …
Also known as: Anta do Senhor da Serra This dolmen is located on private property. I requested permission from the property owner to visit the anta, but never heard back. Therefore I can’t present a personal site visit. This anta is one of the three Antas de Belas, which were …
The cars and trucks go whizzing past. They used to be able to stop and refuel, allowing the people inside a chance to get out and stretch their legs. Now the motorway exit and nobody stops and gets out. The megalithic tomb is largely unvisited and only rarely seen as …
