Visited 29th October 2013
Slap bang next to the giant is another of Brittany’s enigmatic stone settings, the Quadrilateral de Manio. Basically a large stone rectangle, with a porch type setting at one end, which would once have provided a forecourt facing to the south-east. It’s amazing to think that apparently this would have once been covered by a huge mound.
Trees surround the site preventing an observation of the wider area, and I wonder whether the menhir was erected first, or if it was intended as some sort of indicator stone for the Quadrilateral? Burl says the stones were set on a long low mound, but it’s difficult to make this out now.
It’s just about possible to get a photo of the whole of the site in shot , as long as you take your picture from the forecourted end, otherwise some manoeuvring about the trees is required if you want to take a photo from the west end.
I resort to clambering onto the low stone wall which surrounds the site in order to get a slightly elevated view, and manage to get a few photo’s between the regular procession of visitors.
The woodland setting with its dappled light, nearby onlooking menhir, and just proximity to the megalithic wonderland that is Carnac make it a special place, and although a popular site in its own right, it retains a peaceful air, somewhere to ponder on the amazing ancient remains surrounding you, away from the hustle and bustle of the tourists at the main visitors center.