Castro de a Subidá

Castro da Subidá or Castro da Porteliña is situated on a hillock known as Monte de las Siete Espadas (‘Hill of the Seven Swords’). This castro or hillfort settlement sits on steep slopes overlooking the town of Marín and the ría (‘estuary’) of Pontevedra, which facilitated the construction of terraces within the enclosure. The castro was occupied for a long period of time, from the 9th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, and it covers almost 30,000 square metres. Around 1% of the area has been excavated, which uncovered the remains of several round houses built between the 1st century BCE and the 1st century CE. Two rocky promontories, which may have been the foundations of two defensive towers, were also found at the ends of the enclosure. These days the archaeological site has been restored and has signs and information panels about castro culture and this settlement in particular. The word subidá comes from the Latin civitatem meaning ‘city’, which was a common place name for this kind of settlements. For this reason, the castro is also known as Castro da Suvidá and Castro da Sividá