The Municipality of Boticas will implement a programme to enhance the Castros do Outeiro Lesenho and Castro de Carvalhelhos hillforts, with the support of an approved project for the promotion of cultural and natural heritage. This programme provides for a multidisciplinary, phased and integrated intervention, with the aim of preserving, researching, museumising and culturally enhancing two of the most important archaeological sites in the municipality of Boticas, both classified as Properties of Public Interest.
two of the most important archaeological sites in the municipality of Boticas
The intervention includes archaeological excavations, conservation and restoration work, the installation of interpretive signage, and the development of digital reconstructions that will allow for a better understanding and enjoyment of the sites.
The Hillfort of Carvalhelhos is located near the village of the same name, at an altitude of about 860 metres, on a small hill overlooking Caldas de Carvalhelhos. It is an Iron Age settlement that stands out for its complex defensive system, consisting of walls, moats and a field of embedded stones, still preserving traces of residential structures inside.
The Hillfort of Outeiro Lesenho It occupies the top of the hill of the same name, at an altitude of 1,078 metres, dominating a vast landscape over the municipality of Boticas. It is one of the most emblematic fortified settlements of the Iron Age in the north-west of the peninsula, recognised for its size, monumentality and association with the largest known group of statues of Castro warriors.
This project aims to strengthen territorial identity, promote cultural and educational tourism, and ensure the preservation of an archaeological legacy of high heritage value, contributing to the sustainable enhancement of local heritage.
