Excavations in the prehistoric site of CASTANHEIRO DO VENTO (HORTA DO DOURO - VILA NOVA DE FOZ CÔA – NE OF PORTUGAL) JULY/AUGUST 2008

About the region and the site – please visit the page (although not updated):
http://www.architectures.home.sapo.pt
This is an extremely beautiful region of NE Portugal where Porto wine is produced

Period :
6 July – 2 August 2008

REGISTER FROM NOW UNTIL THE 15TH JUNE 2008 - SEND YOUR SHORT CV- SEE BELOW

CONDITIONS TO PARTICIPATE:

* real motivation and interest in archaeology – we accept any adult, independently of his/her basic formation or specialization
* please send a brief cv and personal data (name, address, e-mail, etc) to Ana Vale ana.m.vale@...
* directors of the excavation, responsible for the acceptance of volunteers: Prof. Vítor Oliveira Jorge (Univ. do Porto), João Muralha Cardoso (PhD student until the end of 2007, University of Porto), Ana Margarida Vale (PhD student, University of Porto), Gonçalo Leite Velho (lecturer - Instituto Politécnico de Tomar and PhD student until the end of 2007, University of Porto) and Bábara Carvalho, archaeologist.
Local collaboration of Dr. Ângela Carneiro (Post doc holder of a FCT-Portugal scholarship). Local collaboration of archaeologists from the UK
* showing capacity of integration into a team work, in course of action

Kind of work:

Open air excavation located in the top a a hill of easy access (the large area being studied is not protected from sun or rain, etc.; in the place we have just a small house to keep working tools as a basic logistic support to the excavation – people are daily transported from the village of Freixo de Numão until this point and back).
We may need also a small team, whose elements may change, in a rotation system, to work in the local museum of Freixo de Numão (Prehistoric section): to range things, to wash, to mark, to store information about previously recovered artifacts, under the orientation of the directors of excavation and of Ângela Carneiro

Daily time-table:
8 h. - breakfast at Freixo
9 h – 13 – morning period of work
13-15 – lunch (hot meal served in Freixo)
15,30 – 18 h – evening period of work
Please bting clothes for all kinds of weather, including rain; bag, camping bottle and solar protection cream; do not forget your sleeping bag

IMP. - Transportation is assured according to the preceding timetable


Services furnished- by the local association ACDR (logistics) - and by the responsible of the works (archaeologists):

* VERY FRIENDLY AND OPEN MINDED WORKING AMBIANCE
* accommodation in common bedrooms with showers
* three daily hot meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner in ACDR canteen). Breakfast on Sundays not included. Each participant shall arrive at Freixo railway station (trains from Porto, S. Bento railway station) on the Sunday evening before the first working day e and leave in the morning of Saturday following the last day's work (we do not dig on Saturdays and Sundays)
* drinkable mineral water in individual bottles of 1,5 l. (each day)
* transportation to the working place and back (4 times a day)
* transportation from the railway station of Freixo/Mós do Douro to Freixo de Numão (c. 13 km) at arrival (Sunday afternoon) and back at departure (Saturday morning).
* facilities to cloths washing machine
* training in fieldwork (excavation and connected tasks) and in the analysis of artefacts
* lectures using power point presentations about the work carried out – 1 hour per week after dinner – free open debates, etc
* availability of all the archaeologists to debate and to explain the methodology, including topography, recording, drawing, etc,
* visit to the Museum of Casa Grande and to the archaeological sites of Castelo Velho de Freixo de Numão (Copper Age) and Prazo (Neolithic, Roman, Mediaeval)
* booklet about the archaeology of the region
* organization of a visit (price entrance not included) to the Paleolithic open air engravings of the Côa river valley, worldly famous (UNESCO mankind Heritage) (previous register is needed)
* certificate of the work done

Periods of participation and costs (pay of half of the amount in the moment of registration and of the other half at arrival to the local association ACDR de Freixo de Numão – directed by archaeologist António Sá Coixão – phone contact 351-279-789573 (phone/fax):

- 1 week – from Sunday afternoon until next Saturday morning) - 200 €
- 2 weeks (2 first ones bor 2 last ones) - 400 €
- 4 weeks – 800 €

Today Castanheiro do Vento ("Chestnut tree") is one of the most important places in Iberia and even at an Western European level for the study of prehistoric architectures (III-II mil BC)


Please remerber: for any informations and applications contact with:
ana.m.vale@...