Anta 1 do Vale da Laje

About

The Anta do Vale da Laje is a prehistoric dolmen or burial tomb, located in the parish of Serra e Junceira within the municipality of Tomar in the Santarém District of Portugal. It is believed to have been part of a larger complex of five dolmens, the other four having since disappeared, which is why it is sometimes referred to as Anta 1 of the Vale da Laje. Excavations have found the first evidence in Portugal of milk and dairy product consumption during the late 4th/early 3rd millennia BCE.

Description: This megalithic monument is believed to be the oldest known dolmen found north of the Tagus River. It stands on a hill, approximately 160 metres above sea level, on the bank of an artificial dam, about 10 km south-east of Tomar. Its pentagonal burial chamber is formed by five large orthostats, each over 2.5 metres high, and is approached by a short and narrow access corridor flanked by several pillars that were covered by two large roof slabs or capstones, of which only one remains. The corridor faces east and is slightly off-centre from the chamber. The stones used were sourced from a gneiss outcrop about 100 metres away from the monument. The tomb was originally surrounded...