The Modern Antiquarian. Stone Circles, Ancient Sites, Neolithic Monuments, Ancient Monuments, Prehistoric Sites, Megalithic MysteriesThe Modern Antiquarian

Menhir de Champ-Dolent

Standing Stone / Menhir

Fieldnotes

When first arriving into Brittany the natural first place place to go to is Mont St Michel, it is a magical Hogwarty dreamy kind of place. But when the hoards of tourists (and I cant stress the word hoards enough) choke the only street, it is time to come here, to the Menhir, thee menhir, of Champ Dolent.
At 32 feet, it is just over 6 feet taller than the Rudston monolith, Britain's tallest stone, but hey, it's not a competition, is it ? It is so big it just giddies the mind and it becomes impossible to look at its height and girth with out smiling, they were a bit bonkers in Brittany weren't they ?
There were a few people here today, but none of them stayed long, when ever someone comes we take a seat on a nearby table and watch them take the inevitable selfie, sorry to use such a contemporary term, I am in no way a modern man.
It was harder to find the stone this time, don't know why, and the bushes that lined the short path to the stone have gone, opening the whole place right up.

Burl says the Granite monolith was taken from a massif 4 km to the south, and erected on the Schist plateau, it's name is sometimes translated as "the field of sadness" which is interestingly samey as Kerloas "The heath of sadness".
The Menhir of Dol is said to be related to the Menhir De Noyal, 17km south east, related by the Devil throwing them both from Mont St Michel.

Menhir de Champ-Dolent is essential viewing for any stone hunting trip to Brittany. It is a true marvel.
postman Posted by postman
10th August 2014ce
Edited 10th August 2014ce

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