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See also: Neolithic Brittany and Neolithic France
The Ménec alignments, the best-known megalithic site among the Carnac stonesStones in the Kerlescan alignmentsMegalithic alignments at CarnacLe Menec alignments.
The Carnac stones (Breton: Steudadoù Karnag) are an exceptionally dense collection of megalithic sites near the south coast of Brittany in northwestern France, consisting of stone alignments (rows), dolmens (stone tombs), tumuli (burial mounds) and single menhirs (standing stones). More than 3,000 prehistoric standing stones were hewn from local granite and erected by the pre-Celtic people of Brittany and form the largest such collection in the world.[1] Most of the stones are within the Breton municipality of Carnac, but some to the east are within neighboring La Trinité-sur-Mer. The stones were erected at some stage during the Neolithic period, probably around 3300 BC, but some may date to as early as 4500 BC.[2]
Although the stones date from 4500–3300 BC, modern myths associated them with 1st century AD Roman and later Christian occupations. A Christian myth associated with the stones held that they were pagan soldiers in pursuit of Pope Cornelius when he turned them to stone.[3][4][5] Brittany has its own local versions of the Arthurian cycle. Local tradition similarly claims that the reason they stand in such perfectly straight lines is that they are a Roman legion turned to stone by Merlin.
In recent centuries, many of the sites have been neglected, with reports of dolmens being used as sheep shelters, chicken sheds or even ovens.[6] Even more commonly, stones have been removed to make way for roads, or as building materials. The continuing management of the sites remains a controversial topic.[1][7]
According to Neil Oliver's BBC documentary A History of Ancient Britain,[8] the alignments would have been built by hunter-gatherer people ("These weren't erected by Neolithic farmers, but by Mesolithic hunters"). That would place them in a different category from Stonehenge in England, which has been claimed to be the work of Early European Farmers.[9] The question of which people Carnac stones are to be attributed to is still debated.[10]
^ ab"Megaliths of Carnac: Introduction". menhirs.tripod.com. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
^"Marvelling at Carnac's stones". News.therecord.com. 2008-03-08. Archived from the original on 2012-04-15. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
^"France Holidays, Brittany". Franceholidays.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
^"Why are Carnac Stones Called Megaliths?". Big Site of Amazing Facts. 15 December 2008. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
^TheCaptain (3 January 2005). "La Madeleine dolmen Burial Chamber (Dolmen)". The Megalithic Portal and Megalith Map. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 2006-05-17.
^"Megaliths of Carnac: Standing Stones / Menhirs". megaliths.sherwoodonline.de. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
^"A History of Ancient Britain, Series 1, Age of Ancestors". www.bbc.co.uk (BBC Two). Retrieved 2020-11-09.
^"Stonehenge built by descendants of early immigrants, study finds". The Independent. 2019-04-16. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
^Laporte, Luc; Roux, Charles-Tanguy Le (2005). Bâtisseurs du Néolithique (in French). Maison des Roches.
The Carnacstones (Breton: Steudadoù Karnag) are an exceptionally dense collection of megalithic sites near the south coast of Brittany in northwestern...
Men Dû and Beaumer. Carnac is famous as the site of more than 10,000 Neolithic standing stones, also known as menhirs. The stones were hewn from local...
goddess Baetylus – Type of sacred standing stone Carlin stone – Name of many stones in Scotland Carnacstones – Set of megalithic sites in Brittany, France...
from there. The CarnacStones in France are estimated to have been built around 4500 BC, and many of the formations include megalithic stone circles. The...
CarnacStones in Brittany, France consist of thousands of stones. Megalithic walls Also called Cyclopean walls Stone circles In most languages stone circles...
coastline. It had a population of 759,684 in 2019. It is noted for its Carnacstones, which predate and are more extensive than the Stonehenge monument in...
Scandinavia and northern France. A well known example is the Carnacstones, a complex of stone rows in Brittany. There are a number of examples on Dartmoor...
tombs and stone rows. The Morbihan département, on the southern coast, comprises a large share of these structures, including the Carnacstones and the...
the name "cromlech" in English refers to large stone circles such as those found among the Carnacstones in Brittany, France. Unlike in English, the word...
people by interpreting omens. The Carnacstones are a cluster of megaliths in the north western village of Carnac in Brittany. The megaliths were probably...
up or stacked for various reasons. Old World petroforms include the Carnacstones and many other megalithic monuments. Petroforms are shapes and geometrical...
these stones presented as fact. To help recognize exaggerations, an introductory description shows how to calculate the weight of colossal stones from...
Solnitsata Starčevo culture Tisza culture Vinča culture Old European script CarnacStones - Tumuli Chapman, John (2012). "Varna". The Oxford Companion to Archaeology...
Stonehenge, the Pyramids, Native American mounds, the Nazca Lines in Peru, Carnacstones, and Native American burial grounds, and often evoked the spirituality...
Bosseno Roman villa, but is remembered today for his studies of the Carnacstones. These had long been the subject of myth, and from the 1720s various...
into stone and surrounded by other stones to prevent her escaping. What became of the giant is unknown. A legend told at Carnac states that the Carnac stones...
tourist expectations. The preservation of certain sites, such as the Carnacstones or the historic town center of Tréguier, in the face of overtourism...
with earth or smaller stones to form a tumulus (burial mound). Small pad-stones may be wedged between the cap and supporting stones to achieve a level appearance...
homosexuality. "Cold Stones" could refer to the ruins, the statues, and the old buildings that Carmela sees in Paris. "Cold Stones" could also refer to...
25,000 BC) and Lascaux (c. 15,000 BC) as well as the Neolithic-era Carnacstones (c. 4,500 BC) are among the many remains of local prehistoric activity...
sunrise 11 days before the vernal equinox in 2500 BC. Belchen System Carnacstones Belchen System Goseck circle Glauberg Magdalenenberg (disputed) The...
are the Carnacstones (c. 3300 BC, but may date to as old as 4500 BC) and the stones at Saint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens. Le Menec alignments, Carnac. Cairn...
megalithic sites from the Neolithic, including the exceptionally dense Carnacstones site (approximately 3,300 BC). In 600 BC, Ionian Greeks from Phocaea...
erected in Ireland; the Rock carvings at Alta are made 4500 BC – The Carnacstones are erected in France. 4700 BC – The Locmariaquer megaliths are erected...
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