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<< Our Photo Pages >> Menir da Meada - Standing Stone (Menhir) in Portugal in Portalegre

Submitted by cmariasousa on Sunday, 14 August 2005  Page Views: 14615

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Menir da Meada
Country: Portugal Distrito: Portalegre Type: Standing Stone (Menhir)
Nearest Town: Castelo de Vide  Nearest Village: Póvoa e Meadas
Latitude: 39.495990N  Longitude: 7.4457W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
4 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
5 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
4 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
5

Internal Links:
External Links:

I have visited· I would like to visit

Bak_teria visited on 25th Jul 2015 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 4 Access: 5

rrmoser Alta-Falisa DrewParsons Magalhaes have visited here

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Bak_teria : Meada menhir and the Alentejo landscape. Photo taken in July, 2015. (Vote or comment on this photo)
Largest known standing stone (Menhir) in the Iberian Peninsula, located in Portalegre (Alto-Alentejo), Portugal

The Meada menhir is located in the Alto-Alentejo zone, 10 km north of Castelo de Vide, in the Portalegre district and is one of the biggest man made standing stones in the whole Iberian Peninsula. It is believed to have been implanted on the ground in the neo-chalcolithic period and is classified as National Monument since the 24th of June, 2013.

About the size and the location
This menhir is about 7.15 meters high and about 1.25 mts across (3.90m in the perimeter of the base). It's deployed on the line of contact of schist with granite formations, this monolith was obtained in coarse-grained porphyritic granite, extracted from rock outcrops nearby. It was fractured into two parts but is rehabilitated nowadays. It has a phallic configuration and near the top features a large glans.

About the worn-out part of the menhir
In the area from the ground up to 1.60 meters tall the menhir has a noticeable worn-out part. According to local lore it was tradition to ingest stone dust to get a better sexual performance. Still, I think it's only a theory.

Links and information sources (all texts written in portuguese):
- DGPC
- Portal do Arqueólogo
- Taejo Internacional - Roteiro Histórico e Ambiental de Castelo de Vide

Aditional information:
- Follow the sign by the road.
- There's a small picnic park next to the monument.
- Don't make fires and take your garbage with you, maintain the site clean for others to enjoy.

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Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Bak_teria : Me standing next to Meada menhir in 2015. Now you can get an idea of the size. (2 comments - Vote or comment on this photo)

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Alta-Falisa : A striking menhir near Castelo de Vide, a nice town in Alentejo Alto. Reachable by car (no hard surface). Should be better known. Photo : April 2009. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by DrewParsons : When I visited in April 2010 the spring flowers were out and the park looked lovely. One of my favourite sites - and no one else around!! Site in Alentejo Portugal (Vote or comment on this photo)

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Alta-Falisa : Still well in place, March 2017. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by DrewParsons : A view across the park to the menhir. April 2010. Site in Alentejo Portugal

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by DrewParsons : This menhir is a whopper!! At 7 metres tall and 1.25 metres diameter it dominates the park. April 2010. Site in Alentejo Portugal

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by DrewParsons : April 2010. Site in Alentejo Portugal

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by DrewParsons : Approaching the menhir through the attractive park. April 2010.Site in Alentejo Portugal

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Magalhaes : Site in Alentejo Menir da Meada (2 comments)

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Alta-Falisa : Narrowing down on the engraving, at about mid-height. March 2017.

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by Alta-Falisa : At about 3.5 m from the ground, a strange and unexplained deep engraving. March 2017.

Menir da Meada
Menir da Meada submitted by DrewParsons : The site sign. April 2010. Site in Alentejo Portugal

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 4.3km S 172° Anta da Casa dos Galhardos* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
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 6.1km SSW 200° Anta dos Coureleiros 3* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
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 9.1km WSW 238° Chafurdão das Lancheiras* Castro or Chafurdão
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"Menir da Meada" | Login/Create an Account | 4 News and Comments
  
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Re: Menir da Meada by ModernExplorers on Sunday, 25 March 2018
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We toured Portugal at the end of 2017, take a look at our film to see more of this beautiful site -

[ Reply to This ]

Re: Menir da Meada by DrewParsons on Friday, 07 May 2010
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I drove to the Menhir da Meada from Castelo de Vide in April 2010. The menhir is 15 kilometres to the north of the town. Initially I took the Póvoa e Meadas road reached north of Casetlo de Vide from the N246-1. I continued along the Póvoa e Meadas road for approximately 7 kilometres. I then turned right (east) and drove for 6 kilometres to a T junction. Here I turned left (north) and drive for a kilometre to a road on the right where there was a sign for the menhir. The nice park containing the menhir is 800 metres down this lane. On the way back I took the more direct road towards Castelo de Vide but I think trying to find this route from the town towards the menhir might be more complex as the road near the town has may side roads and branches. The GPS coordinates for the menhir taken at the site with my hand held GPS were: 39.49603N and 07.44572W which confirm those taken by Magalhaes in 2006.

This is perhaps the tallest menhir in Iberia. Made of granite and recently restored (1993), it is thought to have been part of an alignment of menhirs each intervisible. Hence its height as it was located in a slight depression. It is huge at 7 metres tall and 1.25 metres diameter.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Menir da Meada by Magalhaes on Wednesday, 17 May 2006
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It's definitely something, and must have required some manpower, being over 7 m and 15 tons. It was "found" in 1965, though it was broken and fallen, and was restored in 1993. It's easy to find from Castelo de Vide, as it is well indicated, as so many other local megaliths.

Castelo de Vide being rich in megaliths, roman and medieval sites, please refer to the Centro de Interpretação do Megalitismo for the nice (and effective!) maps and routes in Northern Alentejo.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Menir da Meada by Magalhaes on Monday, 15 May 2006
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My coords WGS84 14-05-2006 N 39.49599 W 7.44570
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