Way, Waaay Back in History

2-Oct-23

Vila Nova de Foz Côa is a small town along the Côa River just outside of which lies a massive treasure trove of Paleolithic rock art.

Entering Portugal (NN: The border was completely unguarded and was a beautiful valley split by the Duoro River that separates the two countries, and that we would follow for the next few days.)

Côa Valley

Vila Nova de Foz Côa

We took a night tour to see the carvings illuminated at night, which was quite a treat, as the lights attracted moths, which attracted a lot of bats! And once the lights were turned off, we were in such a remote location, the sky was completely dark. We could see the Milky Way & countless satellites passing overhead. (NN: The number of satellites being a big concern in my line of work as it will make accident avoidance harder in space and astronomers are worried about light pollution. In a few years the number of just Starlink satellites, which are very visible in space, will equal the number of visible stars in the sky.)

The carvings were recently discovered in the 1990s when a hydroelectric dam project was slated for the Côa Valley. Construction immediately stopped, archeologists moved in, & the site was quickly declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The dam was never built. (NN: Some of the carvings are hard to make out because they would draw a figure right over and older one, this despite that there would be other seemingly just as good slabs of stone that were unmarked next to them. Also, sometimes they would draw the same figure multiple times lower and then higher to represent movement.)

The town now takes great pride in promoting & protecting the thousands of rock engravings - mostly of horses, goats, & cows - that date back 22,000-10,000 years! (NN: Oldest rock carving art known in the world!)