The decrease in water in the Valdecañas reservoir, in Spain, has led to the emergence of a megalithic monument in the style of Stonehenge, dated between 4000 and 5000 years.
The climate this summer has generated numerous droughts across much of Spain. The lack of rain, while stressful for farmers, has led to something good: the complete reappearance of an old megalithic site known as Doldal de Guadalperal.
The dolmen is located near the town of Peraleda de la Mata and is usually submerged, totally or partially, by the waters of the Valdecañas reservoir. For the construction of the reservoir during the Franco regime, it was necessary to flood some inhabited areas along the Tagus River and also the Guadalperal dolmen. For almost 60 years it remained almost buried under water, although the tips of some rocks appeared when water levels were low (as the photos show).
However, photos of the Doldal de Guadalperal taken last July show the entire megalithic site released from its aquatic confines. The phenomenon has been so rare that people flock to the Dolmen de Guadalperal to see it up close. Landsat 8 satellite images show how drought has hit the coast of Peraleda de la Mata.
In a series of images provided by NASA\’s Space Observatory, this evolution can be seen between July 24, 2013 and July 25, 2019. The site dates back to between 2000 BC. and 3,000 BC and is currently made up of 144 stones, some up to 2 meters high. Many of these stones have snake engravings. Like Stonehenge, this megalithic monument is organized in a circle.
Its purpose is not entirely clear, but Angel Castaño, a member of Raices de Peralêda, a group dedicated to the conservation of the site, suspects it served a dual function, serving as a place of religious worship and as a commercial center, reports the newspaper. local.
Castaño and his companions said now is the time, when the water is at its lowest point and the site has been fully exposed, to relocate it. “This relocation will not only help preserve the stones, which are already showing signs of decay, but it can also serve as a tourist attraction for the region,” Castaño told The Local.
The removal and reinstallation of the monuments require a lot of work, since the position, angle and depth of each stone must be documented, but it is certainly an economic task. The A̳n̳c̳i̳e̳n̳t̳ Romans plundered the site and some elements were recovered by a German archaeologist in 1920. Apart from this, most of the stones still rest in their original position, which will allow for a faithful reconstruction of what the site used to be.
