Dolmen de Dombate
Dolmen of Dombate · Casa da Moura Dombate · Cabana da Moura
Early Neolithic (c.4000–3600 BCE)·Galician Megalithic (Atlantic Neolithic)·🇪🇸 Galicia, A Coruña Province (Cabana de Bergantiños), Spain
About
About Dolmen de Dombate
Finest Galician passage grave, excavated as exceptionally well-preserved chamber with painted megalithic art, between Borneiro and Cabana near A Coruña. Polygonal chamber 4.5 x 3.2 m with 7 orthostats and massive capstone 4.5 m, accessed via 8 m passage segment oriented southeast, within largely intact earth-and-stone tumulus 24 m diameter × 1.8 m high. Art includes black, white and red painted geometric motifs and engravings on orthostats, among Iberia's few surviving painted megaliths. Built c.4000–3600 BCE (Neolithic). Covered by modern protective building with walkway.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Technique of surviving black/red/white paint — pigment sources and application over 6 millennia
- 02Authenticity of paintings after modern exposure — microclimate conservation
Theories
- 01Dombate paintings represent Atlantic megalithic art tradition using earth pigments like Breton passage graves
- 02Galician dolmen art as lineage ancestor depiction for dispersed farmsteads
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 4000–3600 BCE
- Period
- Early Neolithic (c.4000–3600 BCE)
- Culture
- Galician Megalithic (Atlantic Neolithic)
- Purpose
- Collective passage tomb with painted rock-art chamber
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 4000–3600 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1244 CE
Abandonment
On the ground
Structures & features
43.1900° N · 8.9692° W · 125 m · 3 mapped features
Painted Chamber (7 orthostats)
chamberPolygonal chamber with orthostats bearing black, white and red painted geometric art
43.1900° N · 8.9692° W8 m Passage
passageEntrance passage southeast of chamber with capstones
43.1900° N · 8.9691° WTumulus (24 m)
tumulusEarth-and-stone mound covering passage grave with modern protective roof building
43.1900° N · 8.9693° W
Gallery