from ~5000 BC
Prehistory & Megaliths
The Menir da Meada is the largest fully human-carved menhir in the Iberian Peninsula — and, by radiocarbon dating, the oldest precisely dated standing stone in the world.
Just outside Castelo de Vide stands the Menir da Meada, the largest fully human-carved menhir in the Iberian Peninsula. Radiocarbon dating places its erection between 4810 and 5010 BC, making it the oldest precisely dated standing stone in the world — nearly two thousand years before the great dolmens.
The menhir does not stand alone. It belongs to a megalithic cluster spread along the Sever river, a landscape of dolmens and standing stones that speaks of a long, organised human presence.
Other sites in the cluster include the Anta dos Coureleiros and the Dólmen da Melriça, both part of open-air visiting routes today.
Related routes
- Guide
By car and on foot · half a day
Guide to the Megaliths
The Menir da Meada, Anta dos Coureleiros, Dólmen da Melriça — and the interpretation centre inside the castle.
- Guide
On foot · half a day to several days
Nature trails guide
GR41, PR1, and PR3 — where heritage meets the landscape of Serra de São Mamede.