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Stonehenge Sacred Symbolism - Ancient Beliefs in Britain and Northern Europe

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<< Our Photo Pages >> Côa Valley - Rock Art in Portugal in Guarda

Submitted by DrewParsons on Wednesday, 16 November 2011  Page Views: 10341

Rock ArtSite Name: Côa Valley Alternative Name: Parque Arqueológico do Vale do Côa
Country: Portugal Distrito: Guarda Type: Rock Art
Nearest Town: Vila Nova de Foz Côa
Latitude: 41.083000N  Longitude: 7.14W
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
5 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
3

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rrmoser visited on 15th Jun 2018 - their rating: Amb: 5

DrewParsons have visited here

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Ribeira de Piscos: The beautiful Ribeira de Piscos which flows into the Rio Côa. April 2010. (Vote or comment on this photo)
Rock Art in North Portugal. The Côa Valley Archaeological Park is located near the town of Vila Nova de Foz Côa in north eastern Portugal. Its Portuguese name is Parque Arqueológico do Vale do Côa. The park was created when plans to flood the valley for a dam were thwarted after a world wide campaign to save it. In 1995 a new government cancelled the project and the result is a magnificent national and world treasure store of our prehistoric European heritage.

At the time of writing (April 2010) there are four sites that can be visited out of the 16 sites so far discovered. These are: Penascosa, Ribeira de Piscos, Canada do Inferno, and Fariseu. There are different departure points for each of these sites and it is usually necessary to book a place some time ahead of your visit by phone, fax, email or letter. The contact details are:
Parque Arqueológico do Vale do Côa,
Rua do Museu, 5150-610
Vila Nova de Foz Côa,
Portugal.
Tel: +351 279 768 260
Fax: +351 279 768 270
Email: visitas.pavc@igespar.pt
http://www.arte-coa.pt
http://www.ipa.min-cultura.pt/coa

The valley contains around 1000 engravings, a few of which have traces of red tinting on them still. The art mostly comprises animals cut into the rock surfaces reflecting the wildlife which inhabited the area at the time that humans used the valley as a sanctuary during the last ice age. Aurochs, goats, horse and fish are seen, and there is one faint carving of a man which is very unusual in prehistoric art. There are no mammoths carved as the valley was too warm for them to live there.

Dating of the carvings has been difficult although comparisons with styles seen in datable portable and parietal art in Iberia and France is the method used. Accordingly the carvings are thought to belong to two eras, one 25000 before present and the more recent a mere 10000 years before present. Three techniques were used, fine line incision, pecking and abrasion. All three styles can be seen on visits which are made in small groups accompanied by professional guides who point out the various engravings and ensure visitors respect the site too.

I was lucky enough to have a special private tour of the Ribeira de Piscos site with two professors of archaeology from Vitoria University and got to see lots of art not normally accessible to the public. My photos are marked showing which of the four sites they were taken at. For some engravings you need to peer closely to identify the carvings whilst others are very clear. There are carvings made in recent centuries too and these too are protected as part of the overall history of the valley.
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Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Ribeira de Piscos: An aurochs head which has been abraded by the artist. April 2010. (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Ribeira de Piscos: Detail of bovine head. April 2010. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Ribeira de Piscos: Chequered patterns. April 2010. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Ribeira de Piscos: A horse looking towards the left. April 2010. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Ribeira de Piscos: A bovine. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: An unusually advanced style with the head of the animal turned towards the viewer. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: The attractive valley in the northern spring. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: A horse looking towards the left, its head formed partially by the shape of the rock. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: A goat. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: A goat looking towards the right. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: A close up of the goat. April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: In this panel a male horse mates with a female horse, the head of the male is shown in three staggered pisitions to reflect movement, an art concept well ahead of motion flicks!! April 2010.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: An aurochs looking left three quarters of the way up the panel.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: Note the Aurochs facing towards the left at the foot of this series of engravings.

Côa Valley
Côa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : An Aurochs horns and skull in the French National Archaeological Museum (Musée d'archéologie nationale), Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France. Just so you can see what the carvers were depicting at Côa. Photographed in 2009 during a visit to the museum.

Coa Valley
Coa Valley submitted by DrewParsons : Penascosa: A goat looking towards the left. April 2010.

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 2.3km E 98° Parque Arqueologico do Côa Museum* Museum
 2.5km E 96° Vila Nova de Foz Côa* Rock Art
 3.9km SE 144° Gravuras de Rego da Vide* Rock Art
 4.6km WSW 255° Castelo Velho de Freixo de Numão* Henge
 8.8km W 260° Prazo Menhir* Standing Stone (Menhir)
 8.8km W 259° Estação Arqueológica do Prazo* Ancient Village or Settlement
 8.9km SSE 161° Gravuras de Penascosa* Rock Art
 9.2km SSE 161° Núcleo de Gravuras da Penascosa* Rock Art
 13.5km NNW 342° Anta de Vilarinho da Castanheira* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 14.9km NNE 30° Cabeço de Alfarela Castro or Chafurdão
 22.5km NNE 19° Povoado de Baldoeiro Castro or Chafurdão
 24.0km SW 227° Lameira da Cima 2* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 24.0km SW 227° Lameira de Cima 1* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 24.4km WSW 255° Sepultura antropomórfica de Cômbaros Rock Cut Tomb
 24.4km WSW 240° Menir de Penedono* Standing Stone (Menhir)
 24.5km WSW 254° Sepulturas antropomórficas de Fonte Fria Rock Cut Tomb
 25.0km NNW 329° Anta de Zedes* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 25.2km ESE 115° Pena Redonda Castro or Chafurdão
 25.5km WSW 258° Anta do Turgal* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 25.5km WSW 254° Sepulturas antropomórficas da Vale de Perdieiros* Rock Cut Tomb
 26.0km SW 231° Sepulturas antropomórficas de Antas* Rock Cut Tomb
 26.1km WSW 255° Dolmen do Carvalhal* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 26.1km WSW 255° Monte Penedono Dolmen* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
 26.1km SW 234° Rotunda das Antas* Modern Stone Circle etc
 26.2km WSW 254° Dólmens de Lapinhas* Burial Chamber or Dolmen
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"Côa Valley" | Login/Create an Account | 2 News and Comments
  
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Re: Côa Valley by Kuba on Thursday, 12 December 2019
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I think we should merge this entry with this one and update it's coordinates to the Côa valley itself instead of the Vila Nova de Foz Côa town location.
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The Côa Valley: Discovering a lost gallery of stone age art by Andy B on Tuesday, 27 January 2015
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The Côa Valley: Discovering a lost gallery of stone age art by George Nash and Sara Garcês

Painted and engraved rock-art commissioned and executed by Upper Palaeolithic communities is found scattered across Western Europe. While the Franco-Cantabrian regions of Western Europe and southern Italy boast some of prehistory’s most vibrant artistic endeavours, beyond these areas rock art is usually replaced with portable art. However, rare examples of Upper Palaeolithic rock art can be found on schist rock outcropping through the deep V-shaped valleys of central and northern Portugal. Some of the most remarkable are found within the Côa Valley, a deep river gorge allocated for a large dam project.

https://www.academia.edu/10192761/The_C%C3%B4a_Valley_Discovering_a_lost_gallery_of_stone_age_art
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