Anta is the Portuguese name for about 5,000 megaliths built during the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

period in the area of Portugal. The Anta das Pedras Grandes (

Dolmen A dolmen () or portal tomb is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the early Neolithic (40003000 BCE) and were somet ...

of large stones) is a late-Neolithic (between 4500 and 2000 BC) site located in Casal Nova in the parish of Caneças, in the Odivelas municipality, in the Lisbon District of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

. It was classified as a National Monument in 1944. Excavations in the early 21st century suggest that it was originally built as a dolmen or single-chamber megalithic tomb, consisting of a polygonal long chamber with eight supporting stones about 3 metres tall, and a short access corridor. There are traces of a

tumulus A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones buil ...

, and human bones have been discovered. Excavations in the surrounding area also identified many flint chippings, suggesting that the area was used for the production of flint items. The site was first identified in 1880 by the Portuguese archaeologist

Carlos Ribeiro Carlos Ribeiro (21 December 1813, in Lisbon – 13 November 1882, in Lisbon) was a pioneering geologist and archaeologist who inaugurated the concept of fieldwork in Portugal, and was responsible for the discovery and excavation of many Neolithic ...

(1813-1882). It is the only surviving dolmen in the immediate area although several were discovered in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Nevertheless it has suffered considerably from the use of stones by farmers and for construction. The Anta das Pedras Grandes now forms the centrepiece of a small urban park, which was officially opened in late 2018. The remaining stones, which had all fallen, were lifted, to provide a clearer impression of the original architecture of the megalith.

References

{{European Standing Stones National monuments in Lisbon District Megalithic monuments in Portugal Prehistoric sites in Portugal Dolmens in Portugal