The passage that leads to the chamber is at the WSW end of a “...long mound, known locally as the Mound of Ashes, ... 107 metres by 54 metres in plan and nearly 6 metres high...” A lot of the material from the mound was used in the building of the small village beside the monument.
A lot of the carvings in the tombs in Brittany have their artwork highlighted with chalk or charcoal or some other material. It helps the visitor recognise what are often feint and weathered motifs, but maybe in the long run is not the best practice.
The mighty chamber capstone seems to have broken under its own weight.
I’ve seen this motif style variously described as serpentiform or, more prosaically, wavy lines.
Heavily carved orthostat at Mane Lud.
The massive broken cap stone.
Looking toward the entrance, next door almost blocked it off with his shed, bloody Frenchies.
The entrance with the broken capstone above.
At the entrance looking in.
In looking out.
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Pano done with free beta version of Autostitch autostitch.net
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Pano done with free beta version of Autostitch autostitch.net
Tuesday 12 April 2005 The short path from the road – I think the high ground to my left in the pic could even be the beginnings of the original huge mound
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Passage – insanely (and relatively unusually here) invaded by the farm, one side is now formed by an outhouse wall!
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Entrance
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Massive capstone – each of the broken pieces is huge on its own
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Passage stone
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Passage stone – probably the most ‘classic’ carvings here but I had to use flash....
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Chamber
Tuesday 12 April 2005 Carving on chamber stone (I think)
It was getting late now and I was on my way back to the hotel, but as I was driving past I saw a sign saying Mane Lud Dolmen, and like I said, when a dolmen throws itself in front of you, it is impossible to resist a quick look, and it was I’m afraid to say a very quick look.
I came at it from the opposite direction to Moth and Jane, who seem to have been every where around here. The parking place is large, room for twenty cars at least. The path goes off towards some houses, it takes maybe five minutes from car to dolmen. It is a weird path, going where you don’t expect it to, it ended in a small cul de sac, the dolmen is just round the corner. The mound is massive, this is another one of Copes Carnac Grand Tumuli. But the chamber can be accessed now, and it’s a doozey. Roofed over by a whopping but broken capstone, the chamber is accessed via some modern steps at the far end of the big tumulus. The property next door has built their shed right next to the chamber, it forms one side of the passage into the chamber. It was really getting dark now and I didn’t have time to inspect the interior thoroughly, if I did I would have seen some faded ancient carvings. Oh well, next time, for there will be a next time, ive still only seen half of what the Carnac region has to offer.
Not far from Kercadoret is tumulus Mane Lud which is well worth stopping at. It has a huge long mound, inhabited by what looked to me like redwoods. And they’re big buggers.
At the end furthest from the road is the chamber and it’s surprising! Go down a little staircase and you enter the passage and into the massive chamber. It has remarkable carvings on its wall slabs. OK, this ain’t Gavrinis, but at least you have time to study them! On the main slab at the back is a gigantic representation of a pair of ram’s horns. There are also wiggly lines, stripes, phalluses, crooks and axes, or at least I think that’s what they were. All housed underneath a MAMMOTH capstone which I paced out at 7 metres long on top.
