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Explanatory fieldnotes etc to follow....
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Please note Long/Lat approximate. Look out for the road sign for 'Rue Du Menhir'....
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From Aubrey Burl's Megalithic Brittany:
"It is known as La Pierre du Coq and it is claimed that at Easter and Christmas a cock which guards a great treasure will fly away. Should it land on one's shoulder it signifies an invitation to take the gold."
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I have visited Crucuny a number of times over the years. It is an impressive mound and I used to like catching out of the corner of my eye from the road to Carnac.
It is pot-luck as to whether you find it covered in six foot high vegetation or shaved clean by the council's rather aggressive looking lawnmower.
I will, at some point, work out how many of these Grand Tumuli were intervisible in a landscape with less trees...
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Untill recently the Tumulus de Kercado was the oldest dated megalithic site in Europe, conservative carbon dating putting it at around 4800BCE. The single chamber is reached through a low passage which is clearly distinguishable from the chamber itself. This layout points to the tumulus being very early in the Breton passage graves sequence.
About 2000 years after its construction a stone circle was added surrounding the original tumulus, as if to preserve its importance in the, then, modern age. This reverence, and the fact that the tumulus sits at the highest point in the area (hence the huge water tower next door) leads one the believe that the Tumulus de Kercado was possible the most important site in Carnac for many centuries. The water tower is a useul reference, sticking up above the more recent trees. It shows that in Neolthic times and beyond the tumulus would have been clearly visible from all over the Carnac region.
The tumulus is in the grounds of manor house and in private care. A small child or an honestly box will charge you about a euro for the pleasure of entrance but if you visit in the early morning you will almost certainly have the place pretty much to yourself, even in high season. However if you visit in the afternoon you will have the advantage of being able to pop into the creperie to pancake yourself up for the next site.
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