Doigt de Gargantua
The Doigt de Gargantua ( German "Gargantuas Finger, also called Gargantuas Zahn" or Menhir de La Latte ) is a menhir in the castle park of Fort la Latte in Plévenon in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in France .
The 2.64 m high, 0.49 m wide and 0.24 m thick granite menhir is a Christianized megalithic monument that used to be crowned by a cross.
The menhir has many names, it is also called the needle of the warrior and phallus of the giant Gargantua ; based on the novel by François Rabelais (1483–1553).
There are several legends about the menhir. According to one, the giant lost his tooth or finger while crossing the English Channel to reach the coast of England. The trail of his hooves and stick would be visible in the rocks at the foot of the menhir. Another says that Gargantua died in Cap Fréhel after a fight with the korrigans (fairies). All islands in the sea would be part of the giant.
Menhirs in Doingt in the east of the Somme department , in Neaufles-Auvergny in the Eure department and in Saint-Brevin-les-Pins in the Loire-Atlantique department bear the name “Pierre de Gargantua” .
See also
literature
- Loïc Langouët: Les mégalithes de l'arrondissement de Dinan , Institut Culturel de Bretagne, 2004, ISBN 9782868220936 , p. 20.
Web links
- Description and pictures (English)
- Description and pictures (French)
Coordinates: 48 ° 39 '54.2 " N , 2 ° 17' 20.9" W.