Portimão Museum is hosting an exhibition with findings from research carried out over the last few decades, showing finding proofs that the region has been occupied since prehistoric times
The inauguration of the exhibition “Stories That the River Brings Us” aims to show the general public the result of scientific research carried out over the last few decades.
The research has brought together various fragments of the city’s past, revealing many stories about the Arade River.
“Through objects and illustrations of environments, the visitor is taken through the stories of naval activities in a port open to the world”, with stories of “defence and protection of the port”, as well as of the daily riverside life.
Portimão’s Arade River has been an access point to the interior of the Algarve since ancient times due to the excellent natural harbour conditions of its estuary, which led Portimão to grow in close connection with the river, forming part of an extensive network of commercial and cultural exchanges.
Because of its excellent natural harbour conditions, Portimão was possibly called ‘Portus Hanibalis’, ‘Portus Magnus’, or ‘Cilpis’.
Since the Arade River has been silted progressively for some time, navigation has been restricted, requiring extensive dredging to remove considerable amounts of sediment from the riverbed, leading to the discovery of countless traces of the past, indicating that this area has been inhabited since prehistoric times.
These “testimonies from other eras” were collected by members of the Ipsiis Project Association, who have been working with the Portimão Museum carrying out an innovative research project since 2014, entitled “DETDA – Prospecting” with metal detectors in the dredged deposits of the Arade River and the Alvor estuary, with the museum also highlighting the significant involvement and participation of the public in this process.
The exhibition is open to the public as follows:
- Until July 31st and from September 1st: on Tuesdays (from 2.30pm to 6pm) and from Wednesdays to Sundays (from 10am to 6pm)
- During August: Tuesdays (7:30pm-11pm), Wednesdays to Saturdays (1pm-11pm), and Sundays (3pm-11pm).
The exhibition runs until November 3, 2024, and entry is free.
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