Vale Maria do Meio Cromlech

The Vale Maria do Meio Cromlech is a megalithic stone circle situated in Évora district in the Alentejo region of Portugal [1]. It is believed to date back to the fifth millennium BCE or earlier [1]. The cromlech was identified in 1993 by a team of students from the University of Lisbon, led by Manuel Calado [1]. Excavations in 1995, sponsored by the local authority and led by Prof. Calado, identified 34 granite menhirs, which are predominantly oval in shape and have an average height of 1.74 meters [1]. Suggesting an astronomical purpose, the stones form an east-west elongated arch, which is about 37 meters long and 25 meters wide, with the largest monoliths being placed at the highest point of the site, to the west [1]. Engravings of circles, horseshoes and lunar crescents have been found on two of the menhirs, closely resembling engravings found on the Almendres Cromlech [1]. The arrangement of the menhirs suggested to the archaeologists that this monument was built in two distinct phases [1].