The retouched lamellas of Salex and other regional rocks point to various stays at the Penascarosa site, 26,000 years ago
New excavations in the Valley of Côa revealed the existence of chipped stone utensils and other lytic elements used in bonfires, attesting to the presence of human groups during the upper paleolithic, near the famous rock 3.
A team of archaeologists, in research work in the Penscaic Sitein the Côa Valley, found chipped stone utensils that confirm the human presence in the place More than 26 thousand years.
“It is a very important find that after 30 years of the first attempt to identify camping of paleolithic art in the Côa Valley, the ongoing excavations in the Penascosa site now reveal the existence of chipped stone utensils and other lytic elements, used in bonfires, which attest to Presence of human groups During the upper paleolithic, ”the new president of the Côa Park Foundation, told Lusa, João Paulo Sousa.
According to the person responsible, “the technical characteristics of the retouched lamellas of Sul and other regional rocks point to Several stays on the siteabout 26,000 years ago. ”
“Alongside studies developed in the Pharisee Sitewhere even the present excavations were known the Single case of habitat contexts Next to panels recorded outdoors, also now in the penalties, the study and the radiometric dates will allow Establish precise chronology Of these human occupations, ”said João Paulo Sousa.
Researchers emphasize that “results like these, in which the Coincidence of camps of camp In areas with recorded rocks, they can bring important data to understand the activities and behaviors of the paleolithic artists of the Côa Valley Archaeological Park. ”
The polls were carried out under the project “Côa 3p: Paleogeography, Paleoecology and Paleontology”From the Côa and Escribent Territories, by the Côa Parque Foundation archeology team, together with the Geoscience Company Morph, with the collaboration of doctoral students of the Foundation for Science and Technology and Trains of the Archeology Center of the New University of Lisbon.
Archaeological works in the penascious, one of the paleolithic art sites of the Côa Valley
According to João Paulo Sousa, a specific visit and training about these new results will take place during the coming days, and will be integrated in the present presentation of the Sítio da Penhacosa, one of the most emblematic of the art of Côa.
On July 12, during an agency report at this location, it was sure, by the investigators, the continuity of the artistic expression in the paleolithic, in a 30,000 -year cycle never interrupted.
According to archaeologists, after this intervention, “new new” data emerged, because The extension and distribution Originals of the rocks, in the penascious.
The ongoing polls involve work on the ground, excavation, soil analysis, detailed documentation of the findings, among other actions, as well as the appeal to new technologies for identification of areas of interest.
The entire place of prospects It is by the way to be passed to ‘comb’using new technologies, although practical and conventional archeology also applies to the ground, with archaeologists to clean, wash, rub and pour into paper all details that evidence the presence of Côa art, continuously, in this place classified as heritage of humanity.
According to researchers, this work is important “to better understand this site for future memory“.
In the year 2024, they visited the Penascosa Archaeological Site, in the middle of the Côa Valley (PAVC) archaeological park, in particular, More than 8,800 peoplewhich attests to the archaeological importance of the art of Côa.
PAVC, for reasons for safeguarding and conservation of the ‘sanctuary’ of rock art, is limited to a number Total maximum of 15 thousand visitors per yearwhat has been happening.
When the PAVC was created, In August 1996190 rocks with rock art were identified. Currently there are 1511, of which 38 are paintedwhich represents a total of 15,661 identified motivesin more than a hundred distinct sites, and paleolithic engravings, performed about 30,000 years ago, is predominant in a artistic cycle that has never been interrupted.
The art of Côa was classified as National monument In 1997 and, in 1998, as a world heritage by the United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization (UNESCO).
As a huge outdoor gallery, the PAVC occupies 20,000 hectares of land that are distributed through the municipalities Vila Nova de Foz Côa, Mêda, Pinhel and Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo, in the Guarda district, which joins the municipality of Torre de Moncorvo, in the district of Bragança, with ruptured art demonstrations.
