The people's ovens, within the PNPG area, appear systematically in dryland cereal areas, traditionally rye bread, that is, in the areas of the municipalities of Melgaço and Montalegre.

Rye bread that is less durable than corn bread (corn bread can last more than a week after being baked, without over-hardening and without souring) requires frequent batches. Since the work of preparing and heating the oven is a time consuming task, impractical on a daily basis, the people of the rye areas find in the community ovens, a way to profit from efforts. In the past these ovens would be connected continuously.

They are located within the cluster, with each village having its own oven. They are independent constructions, the work of the community. When the oven was lit, it baked bread for several people, and during the waiting time it became a living space.

They are single storey, rectangular in plan, double masonry walls, with arches that support the weight of the roof in granite slabs, others use granite scissors as a roof support. These arches or scissors accentuate protruding buttresses, and for that reason they recall the constructions of Romanesque chapels.

At one end, there is the oven, which in most cases corresponds to a rounded wall. On the side walls, inside, a granite plate flattened and embedded in the wall, serves as a work bench and waiting bench.