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The Castro at Curalha |
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Religion
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The Castro of Curalha (photo by José Semelhe, 2000) Our first stop is Curalha, a village that is interesting because of its rich prehistoric past represented by the best-preserved Castro of the Chaves region. According to legend, the name Curalha was given to the village because it was the name of a rich lady who had lived there in remote times. There is no scientific verification of this origin. The antiquity of the village is evident in the Castro, which sleeps in the shade of a large pine tree, easily seen at great distance. To get to the Castro it is necessary to enter the village, cross a small stream and continue up a dirt road to the "parking place", where the trip must continue on foot. The site is devoid of any infrastructure or information; even the path up to the Castro is badly maintained and difficult to find or follow. There are no signs anywhere or anything written that might make the visit more informative. For most people these are just interesting rocks. In fact a common belief in the area is that these ruins are connected to the Moors, who never even settled here. Everything mysterious is always connected to the Moors. Sadly, there seems to be no interest in preserving the monuments of this part of Portugal.
Photo by José Semelhe This castro is also called Castelo, or Castle, and has the form of a rounded hill. A number of walls with three gates and ramps of access protected it. We can still see rocks that were used for defense as well as some foundations of houses in a square shape. The entire wall, with three meters thickness, is visible today because it was partially rebuilt. Two of the houses can be singled out. The first, built higher on the rocks than the others, could have been the dwelling of the clan chief; the second, of greater dimensions, is believed to have been a house for collective use, since it is in the central zone. It could have been the meetinghouse for the elderly or, according to other opinions, the house where the young people met to be educated. During the excavations that took place here several objects were found, among them fragments of gray pottery, coins, fragments of a drinking vessel made of green glass, as well as other copper objects. From these objects we know that the Romans later occupied this Iron-Age Castro. These can all be seen in the Museum in Chaves.
Photo by José Semelhe The
Castro was built on a rocky, granite hill, four hundred meters high.
Below, to the south, flows the Tâmega, which provided water for the
inhabitants who lived here for at least one thousand years, from the
seventh century B.C. to the third century B.C. These indigenous
societies were first Celtic, then Romanized, and later Christianized.
They constituted the nuclear base on which grew Portuguese nationality
and culture. Unfortunately, this site is abandoned, and
practically unknown by the modern-day inhabitants of Chaves, only five
km. away. Not one sign, not one explanation for one of the most
important historical sites remaining in Tras-os-Montes. Connected
to every castro, also known as town of Moors, there is a legend,
and this one is no exception. The story goes that from this castro
there was a tunnel which had its exit in Bóbeda, in a deep cave on the
east bank of the Tâmega River. According to popular belief,
this mythological cave is impenetrable, with no one who can do it or
even attempt such a feat. It is believed that the cave, in a short
distance, goes down to the river and disappears into a mythological
subterranean river called Candallogo. (Roteiros de
Chaves. p. 138) There is a similar legend connected to the Castle of Monforte, with the tunnel leading all the way to the Forte de São Francisco in Chaves.
View from the Castro looking down at the Tâmega River (photo by José Semelhe 1999)
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