The Terras de Basto

Mondim de Basto is one of three towns with the same suffix: the others are Celorico de Basto, just to the southwest, and the larger Cabeceiras de Basto, 25km north (in the Minho). Together, the three Basto towns and their districts form the Terras de Basto, a region whose name comes from a number of life-sized Celtic warrior statues – beautifully incised with Celtic emblems on the torso and a shield on the belly – which were originally laid on warriors’ graves. Eu basto (I suffice) was their credo, expressing a willingness to face the enemy (Romans for the most part) single-handed.