Leceia
The fortified Copper Age settlement of Leceia is west of Lisbon in Portugal . A road leads from Barcarena in the Oeiras district to the small town of Leceia. Shortly before the site, the prehistoric facility is located near an abandoned windmill .
Location, excavation history and results
The fortification lies on a rock spur above the valley of the Ribeira de Barcarena and is protected in the east by a more or less steep natural slope. The settlement was first described by C. Ribeiro in 1878. In 1983, systematic excavations began, which by 1999 uncovered an area of more than 5000 m², according to preliminary investigations about half of the populated area. The excavations were able to prove various settlement and construction phases, which are also supported by a series of 36 14 C data.
The results of the excavations are interpreted as follows:
1st phase
The 1st phase is in the 2nd half of the 4th millennium BC. Chr. The place is first settled. The finds are classified as late Neolithic .
2nd phase
In the 2nd phase, three wall rings with massive towers or semicircular bastions are built over the layers of the 1st phase or on the natural rock , which are placed in front of the walls. The phase is divided into three sub-phases by renovations and new buildings. Round houses also date from this time, some with paved stone floors. The finds of the epoch are dated to the earlier Copper Age. According to the 14 C dates, they belong in the 1st half of the 3rd millennium to the 1st half of the 2nd millennium BC. Chr.
3rd phase
In the third phase, the walls seem to lose their importance. Houses with thinner walls are being built, some of which use older structures as walls, other parts of the fortifications are destroyed. The pottery finds from this era are classified as the Developed Copper Age. Metallurgical activities are also mentioned in Leceia from this period. At the end of the phase, there are isolated bell-shaped shards .
Overall findings
Since the layer of the 1st phase is not preserved everywhere, Cardoso concludes that erosion processes that started after the 1st phase suggest an interim settlement hiatus . A similar phenomenon should clarify the conclusion of the 2nd phase. That would mean that Leceia would have been repopulated three times after leaving the site for an indefinite period of time.
Development
The Câmara Municipal of Oeiras, to whose concelho Leceia belongs, has turned the site into an open-air museum.
literature
- JL Cardoso: The fortified site of Leceia (Oeiras) in the context of the Chalcolithic in Portuguese Estremadura. Oxford 2000.
- Thomas G. Schattner (Ed.): Archaeological guide through Portugal (= cultural history of the ancient world . Vol. 74). Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1998, ISBN 3-8053-2313-1 p. 145
Web links
- Description (Portuguese)
- Estação eneolítica de Leceia. In: Pesquisa Geral - Pesquisa do Patrimonio. Direção Geral do Património Cultural , accessed March 23, 2018 (Portuguese).
- Description and pictures (English)
Coordinates: 38 ° 43 ′ 41 ″ N , 9 ° 16 ′ 54 ″ W.