09/10/2025 - New archaeological project in S. Brás 3 (Serpa)

ERA's team recently finished the first excavation campaign at São Brás 3, Serpa, an important archaeological site dating back some 5,000 years.

Research into the ceremonial enclosures delimited by ditches from the peninsula's Recent Prehistory has revealed the complexity and symbolic value of their central areas, spaces that concentrated important social and ritual practices. 

In this context, ERA, at the request of and in collaboration with the Municipality of Serpa, has started a research project at S. Brás 3 to gain an in-depth understanding of the functioning and evolution of the central enclosures of this remarkable archaeological site.

The project's main objectives:

- To complete the geophysical survey and planimetric study of the site;
- To analyse the central structure and associated corridor, which are unique in the peninsular and European context;
- Obtain absolute dates and characterise the material culture found;
- Identify and interpret the social practices associated with this space;
- Develop a field school open to students and interested parties;
- Promote public archaeology by actively involving the local community. This project represents an essential step towards deepening our knowledge of the great ditched enclosures of the southwestern Iberian Peninsula, as well as strengthening the dialogue between science, heritage and society.