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Menga Dolmen

The Menga dolmen is a Neolithic megalithic tomb built around 3750-3650 BC on the outskirts of Antequera, within the Antequera Dolmens Site, declared a World Heritage Site in 2016. It forms a corridor and a chamber 27.5 metres long raised with 32 large stones; the largest of the roof slabs weighs about 180 tonnes, one of the largest used in European megalithic architecture. Inside, two intermediate pillars help support the roof slabs, an unusual device in monuments of its time, along with a narrow, deep shaft dug into the floor of the chamber whose original function is unknown. The first orthostat of the corridor bears engravings in the shape of crosses and a star. The whole structure was covered with earth to form a mound 50 metres in diameter. The axis of the monument does not face the sunrise, but the Peña de los Enamorados, a hill shaped like a face several kilometres away. When it was excavated, the remains of several hundred people were found inside.

Things to do at Menga Dolmen: 4 missions

• Look towards the Peña de los EnamoradosStep out of the dolmen and look in the direction of the corridor: the monument's axis points to the Peña de los Enamorados, the face-shaped hill on the horizon, not to the sunrise.
• Find the intermediate pillarsLook for the two pillars set up in the middle of the chamber and the corridor to support the enormous roof slabs, a rare solution in European megalithism.
• Locate the shaft in the chamberAt the back of the chamber, look for the narrow, deep shaft dug into the floor; its function is unknown and it has no clear parallels in Europe.
• Look for the engravings in the corridorOn the first orthostat of the corridor, near the entrance, find the cross and star engravings carved into the stone.

Near Menga Dolmen

Source: Web oficial - Museos de Andalucía (Conjunto Arqueológico Dólmenes de Antequera)