In the area corresponding to the present-day municipality of Boticas, created as part of the administrative-territorial reform of 1836, there is archaeological documentation of a dense occupation associated with the Iron Age, materialised in 21 fortified settlements, all with vestiges of walls, ruins of buildings on the inner platforms and ceramic remains. Some are from a previous foundation, perhaps from the Bronze Age, as evidenced by some hand made ceramics and the finding of bronze pieces (Hillfort of Brejo), and others have known an occupation that seems to have lasted until the time of the Suevi-Visigothic dominion.
Although they are spread over almost the entire territory of the current municipality, a close analysis of their distribution reveals two distinct groups.
Although they are spread over almost the entire territory of the current municipality of Boticas, a careful analysis of their distribution reveals two distinct groups: one in the north and east, linked to the initial basin of the River Terva, and another in the central and western areas, in the basin of the River Beça.
The first group integrates eleven settlements, of different sizes but generally located on hillocks on the upper slope or promontories on the lower slope; nine of them are no more than 4 km away from the nearest one; four of them line up on the right bank of the river, at the foot of the eastern slope of the Leiranco massif, within a short distance of 5 km.
The second group is formed by ten settlements, also of different sizes, spread throughout a larger area and more distant from each other, with diversified implantation solutions, either exposed on the summits, such as the Côto dos Corvos settlement, or sheltered at the bottom of dug valleys, on spurs overlooking water courses, such as Ervas Ruivas or Poio.
The concentration of fortified settlements in the first 10 km of the Terva river course is remarkable. Apart from the more favourable conditions, it is assumed that the settlement of populations in this initial section of the basin is especially related to the mining of Poço das Freitas and Batocas.
In some of the settlements of the second group, traces of metallurgical activity can also be identified and the existence of mining areas is recorded.
Some of the villages preserve monumental remains, which are not very common.
In both the first and second groups, some of the settlements preserve monumental remains which are not very common in this type of archaeological site. Due to their size, the imposing walls that they preserve and their geostrategic positioning, the hillforts of Muro de Cunhas, Carvalhelhos and Lavradas, Giestosa, Cabeço, and, of all these, the imposing fortified settlements of Nogueira and Lesenho stand out.
Dominating the main natural communication routes and encompassing in their surroundings the fertile veins and alveolus of the basins of the rivers Terva and Beça, some of these settlements would have been central places in the protohistoric settlement of the region, to which various indigenous populi are referred. One of these central places was, unequivocally, the Lesenho settlement, from where four statues of Galician-Roman warriors are found.
The fortified settlements of Boticas are a group of high heritage value and of great scientific interest, offering wide possibilities for enhancement. Their protection, conservation and enhancement have been a priority of the municipality, namely through the integration of some of them in the Rede de Castros do Noroeste (Hillforts Network of the Northwest), such as the Lesenho and Sapelos, the latter still under appreciation.
