Ligurian Tommy Leggy

Ceresa is a place where several prehistoric sites are located and a little bit farther starts the Sacred Path Strada Megalitica Del Monte Beigua.

So it has to be said that all this area was a special sacred place for ancient Ligurians, adorers of elements like water (this area is particularly rich in water) or fire.

In front of this menhir, another menhir higher up than this one that has been thrown down, even in front of the final cromlech at the end of Strada Megalitica stands the Bric Greppino, an hill that attracts lightning in stormy weather. The religion of the ancient Ligurian was animism.

And more evidence the Ligurians were part of Celtic World are some houses that still can be found in the village of Alpicella in the neighbourhood of Ceresa. Those houses, the oldest in the village, are built in a typical celtic way (the walls of the front and the back of the house contain the roof in the central part of the house where the roof stands lower than the front and back walls as holding to protect the roof).

Again I have to thank Mr Italo Pucci and Mr Fenoglio of Istituto Internazionale di Studi Liguri for the information.

Altar Rock of Sotto di S.Lorenzo.
Very close to the menir of Passo di Mezzaluna, at a lower level, there’s a small valley, once site of a small lake. In the valley stands this Altar Rock with engraved cup and small drainage canal. It was probably used during ceremonies to receive liquids such as water, milk or blood from sacrifices.

On the western slopes of Monte Beigua there’s a hill called Bric Aliberti. On the western slopes of the hill at 820 metres above sea level there’s this engraved rock. This kind of engraving, made by repeated scratching, have the meaning of a ritual: repeating a prayer while scratching the stone. I have to thank Mister Italo Pucci from Istituto Internazionale di Studi Liguri as I found this sacred rock because of his book, written with Mr Ausilio Priuli. The name of the book is:“Incisioni rupestri e megalitismo in Liguria” edited by Priuli & Verlucca.

On the southern slopes of Monte Beigua, in front of Bric Greppino. There’s this Sacred path, a hundred meters long, called “Strada Megalitica”. At his beginning there are two big rocks as threshold, the distance between the two rocks is 1,65 meters. The threshold is close to a fountain. Where the path ends, at an highest level, are the remains of a wide cromlech. Not so far from this site there’s a small village called Faie that means Faires in Ligurian. Next to a hill called Priafaia. In Ligurian Pria means stone and faia means fairy. So the name of that hill is “the stone of the fairy”...

The menhir of “Cian da Munega” (Nun’s Field) standing on top of a hill dominating the Ligurian Sea, could be a good introduction to the sacred mountain Beigua, on the north of the menhir. This mountain was a very important sacred mountain for the ancient Ligurians. It stands right in the center of Ligurian Gulf.