Megalithism

These were monuments with a magnificence that was similar to the Dolmen of Aldeia da Mata. These monuments fascinated and charmed many scholars during the second half of the 19th century. Who built such structures? Why? The curiosity arising from these constructions, the Men of whom we speak, is one of the purposes of archeology as a science: The search for the reconstitution of actions, because material remnants show men acting.
It is no coincidence that the megalithic monumental heritage was the first of the ancient structures to deserve the designation of National Monument. Upper Alentejo's horizons are characterized by more than half a thousand of these megalithic monuments. They are significant elements of the landscape, repositories of existences and experiences, full of mysteries and symbolism and that have been over thousands of years, as they are today, an integral and unforgettable part of the Alentejo space. These megalithic structures are grouped into two categories: Dolmens and menhirs. The following pages present some of the most outstanding megalithic structures in the territory, not only for their symbolism, but also for their state of preservation and accessibility.

All these monuments are located in private properties, subject to agricultural exploitation, so it is important to respect the predefined accesses, crops, the presence of cattle and the (open or closed) condition of gates and fences. The landowners appreciate your cooperation.

Glossary

Megalithic art
From Greek language megas = large and lithos = stone.
Comprehensive denomination: It refers to buildings using large stones.
This situation took place worldwide, although at different times and in different ways. In Europe, it is identified by a large number of monuments, both ritual and funerary, such as menhirs and dolmens, dating from the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic, especially on the Atlantic façade.

Dolmen
This is a (generally collective) grave that is made with vertical or sub-vertical pillars, polygonal plan or other style; it can be simple, closed or open. The most complicated shapes have a (short, medium-sized or lengthened) corridor or access demarcation; these spaces (chamber and corridor) are covered by slabs in a horizontal position.
The structure is usually surrounded by a burial mound or kurgan, hiding it. There are other associated structures such as the atrium and the corridor inside the burial mound. These spaces are focused on the deposition and perpetuation of a restricted number of individuals, who, for their performance in life, deserved a privileged status within their community.

Source: Megalitismo e comunidades megalíticas na área da Ribeira Grande (Alto Alentejo), Marco António da Silva Andrade (2009) Universidade de Lisboa

Image subtitle:

• (01) Monuments where chamber and corridor are differentiated.
• (02) Monuments where chamber and corridor are undifferentiated.
• (03) Monuments where the corridor is off-center in relation to the chamber axis.
• (04) Closed monuments (no corridors)
• (05/06) Proto-megalithic monuments
• (05) Small closed graves with polygonal chamber
• (06) Small “cystoid” graves

Chalcolithic
This was the period during the pre-history, from the end of the 4th millennium to the third quarter of the 3rd millennium before Christ. It is identified by the incidence of the first metallic objects and fortified sites; occupations of huts and open areas took place frequently.

Pillar
Large stones, which are carefully chosen and placed in a vertical position, partially overlapping, forming a closed space: The chamber and the corridor.

Necropolis
From Greek language nekrós (dead body) and pólis (city); Necropolis is the “city of the dead”.

Neolithic
This was the period during the pre-history, from the end of the 6th millennium and the end of the 4th millennium before Christ; it is usually associated with agro-pastoral economy, sedentary lifestyle, technical innovation (ceramics, weaving, milling, etc.), economic, social and nature-related transformations, as well as the expression of the megalithic art phenomenon.

Kurgan
This is an artificial mound, made of soil only, which is superficially covered by stones or entirely made of stones (cairn).

Cover bed
This is a large stone covering the chamber that is on the top of the pillars.

Menhir
This is a lengthened stone that was placed vertically on the ground, alone or in megalithic sets, and with very diverse meanings: Ritual space of fecundity/fertility, landscape marking, space organization, orientation place, astronomical reading, among others. The Upper Alentejo menhirs seem to align, like many of the Central Alentejo menhirs, in a general orientation that is consistent with that of the Spring Moon.

Cromlech
This is a set of various menhirs that are arranged in circle, ellipse, rectangle or more complicated shapes.