Valencia de Alcántara Dolmens

Spread over a wide area along the border of Portugal, this megalithic complex consists of more than 40 dolmens, or antas, as they are referred to in the area. The most famous of the dolmens is the so-called "El Mellizo” in the little village of Aceña de la Borrega

This megalithic area is among the largest in Europe. The stone structures are funerary constructions from the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods, which spanned between the third and fourth millennium BC. At the site, archaeologists have found individual and group burials, as well as funerary goods such as ceramics, ornaments, arrowheads, axes, carvings, and anthropomorphic idols.

The dolmens were built usually of granite, although depending on the area, you can find slate structures. In more modern times, the dolmens have served as a refuge for farmers during stormy weather and even as a shelter for livestock. In the past, some of the dolmens were dismantled and repurposed as building materials, while others were marred by vandalism. Fortunately, quite a few of them remained in tact, and now all the dolmens are protected.