The settlement of Escoural virtual reconstruction

At the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC, after a long use of the Escoural Cave as a sacred space, a small, fortified settlement appeared on top of the hill.
It is unclear if these new dwellers had any previous knowledge of the cave's successive occupations. Since the hill offers great visibility, and is also a great defensive location, the reasoning behind why this settlement was built here could have been purely strategic.
The site was excavated in the 1980’s, by the archaeologist Manuel Farinha dos Santos, who identified two distinct phases of occupation: the oldest, dating from the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC, corresponds to the construction of the wall and towers, that can still be observed; the most recent, dating from around 2.000 BC, in the late Chalcolithic or early Bronze Age, that is the last phase of human occupation of the cave area.
The settlement consisted of a wall and dry stone towers that defended the top of the hill. Remains of copper smelting were discovered inside, proving that metallurgical activities would have taken place there. Utensils associated with other practices, such as weaving (loom weights), or war and hunting activities (arrowheads) were also found.