Dolmen de Viera
Dolmen de los Hermanos Viera · Viera Passage Grave · Antequera Viera
Neolithic – Early Copper Age (c.3850–3000 BCE)·Antequera Chalcolithic / Alcoreños·🇪🇸 Andalusia, Málaga Province (Antequera), Spain
About
About Dolmen de Viera
Second major megalith of the Antequera Dolmens World Heritage Site, sited only 70 m east of Dolmen de Menga on Antequera plain. Corridor dolmen (dolmen de corredor) 21.5 m long with 27 orthostats (10.5 m corridor + 3.5 × 3 m chamber) capped by 6 capstones, oriented sunrise-equinox (?) southeast. Built c.3850–3600 BCE (copy? c.3510–3020 BCE Copper Age revised). Excavated 1903–05 by Viera brothers who also found El Romeral. Finds include pottery, anthropomorphic idols and lithics. Structural orthostats of limestone with anthropomorphic shapes. Contrasts with Menga's massive trapezoidal plan by being longer, narrower and more cave-like. Manages joint visitor centre with Menga; free access.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Why built 70 m from Menga — dual monument pair significance
- 02Original mound height and whether Viera and Menga shared common tumulus
Theories
- 01Viera and Menga form complementary solar vs ancestral pair in Antequera sacred landscape aligned to Peña de los Enamorados
- 02Shorter chronology (3510–3020 BCE) suggests Copper Age re-cut of Neolithic orthostat quarry
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 3850–3600 BCE (construction); reused to 3000 BCE
- Period
- Neolithic – Early Copper Age (c.3850–3000 BCE)
- Culture
- Antequera Chalcolithic / Alcoreños
- Purpose
- Collective corridor dolmen for ritual burial in Antequera plain landscape
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 3850–3600 BCE (construction); reused to 3000 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1480 CE
Major expansion
On the ground
Structures & features
37.0237° N · 4.5483° W · 450 m · 3 mapped features
21 m Corridor
passage10.5 m long corridor of 27 orthostats leading southeast entrance
37.0237° N · 4.5483° WBurial Chamber
chamberRectangular chamber 3.5 x 3.0 m with capstone and perforated door slab?
37.0237° N · 4.5482° WPerforated Dividing Slab
slabHof? Portal slab with (?) shaped opening between corridor and chamber
37.0237° N · 4.5483° W
Gallery