Prehistoric art museum of Maçao

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39.556917, -7.993460

Type of site:
Museum

Place of location: Maçâo
Village/Town: Envendos
Municipality: Mação (Santarém)
Region: Lezíria do Tejo
State: Portugal
Telephone: (+35) 241 571 477, (+35) 961 205 841
Website: http://www.museumacao.pt/
E-mail: museu@cm-macao.pt

Natural Environment:

The mountains of north-east Portugal, in the Central Region of the country is an area of olive groves, as well as almond trees and grape-vines. The river Douro defines the relief and scenery of the area; with its tributaries, especially the River Côa, which displays along the length of its valley an ancient artistic cycle on the schist rocks by the side of its course.

Archaeological evidences in the site:

Over a thousand Upper Palaeolithic engravings are currently known, representing aurochs, horses, ibex and deer, as well as other species and non-figurative signs and marks. Most of the engravings are on vertical rock surfaces. Other engravings dated in recent prehistory (Neolithic – Metal Ages) also exist, with anthropomorphs, zoomorphs and other figures more difficult to interpret.

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Opening Times:

Tuesday to Sunday: 9.00 – 12.30 and 14.00 – 17.30. Closed January 1, Easter Sunday, May 1 and Christmas Day.

Booking and access:

Advance bookings by email: visitas.pavc@igespar.pt

Nearby cultural destinations:

Castelo Melhor (Vila Nova de Foz Côa): Medieval castle, Chãs/Muxagata (Vila Nova de Foz Côa): Museu de Sitio de la Quinta de Ervamoira, Freixo de Numão (Vila Nova de Foz Côa), Numão (Vila Nova de Foz Côa), Marialva (Meda): Roman villa, Coriscada (Meda): ruins of a Roman villa, at Vale do Mouro, Longroiva (Meda), Almofala (Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo): Roman temple, Castelo Rodrigo (Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo): Medieval village, Pinhel: Historical town.

Nearby natural destinations:

Part of Foz Côa Archaeological Park is inside the River Côa Special Protection Area, a protected areas for birds in the Natura 2000 network. The Douro International Natural Park is near the Archaeological Park.

Accommodations (Tourism Website):

Restaurants (Tourism Website):

Age of the artistic representations:

Upper Palaeolithic and Recent Prehistory (Neolithic – Metal Ages).

General description of the destination:

River Côa Archaeological Park consists of a main centre in Vila Nova de Foz, and two Visitor Reception Centres, from where the three most important groups of rock art can be visited. From Vila Nova de Foz, visitors can see Canada do Inferno; from Castelo Melhor they can visit Penascosa; and from Muxagata, the destination is Ribeira de Piscos. These Visitors’ Centres have all the necessary infrastructure, with information about the valley and the art both in displays and computer presentations.

History of the site:

The site was discovered in 1991 during the course of the archaeological survey of the area prior to the construction of a hydroelectric dam. The find of “Rock 1 in Cañada do Inferno” led to the discovery of tens of rocks with engravings. Due to the importance of the find, UNESCO listed the rock art of Foz Côa as World Heritage, which caused the project of the dam to be suspended and originated the creation of an Archaeological Park. This now guarantees the conservation and dissemination of this impressive open-air rock art site.

Museographic resources description:

The Museum of Prehistoric and Sacred Art of the Tagus Valley allows us to discover the origins of agriculture and art in the Maçâo region. The current permanent exhibition, “From gesture to art: creating, making, communicating”, was opened in 2015 and focuses on the relevance of gesture in the constitution of humanity, both for the formation of identities and for the projection of functional and artistic materials.
The creation of the museum took place in 1943 after the important archaeological discovery of Porto do Concelho, on the initiative of João Calado Rodrigues and with the support of the City Council. After the discovery of the cave paintings in the valley of the Ocreza River, in 2000, the necessary reorganisation and inventory was carried out, as well as the design of an exhibition programme for the museum.