Menhir La Grande Pierre Levée de la Bretelliére
The slightly crooked menhir La Grande Pierre Levée de la Bretelliére (also called La Bretelliére or La Grande Pierre Levée ) is 6.2 m, the highest menhir in the province of Anjou . It is made of granite and is located in the "Parc de la Croix verte" in Saint-Macaire-en-Mauges, northwest of Cholet in the Maine-et-Loire department in France .
The stone, which weighs around 50 tons and has been classified as a historical monument since 1941 , belongs to an ensemble of four to five menhirs set up a little further away (Menhir a Cupules, Pierre Levée de la Bretaudiere, Pierre Charruée du Grand Bois Girard, Pierre Levée du Courreau) and is well known for its incision in a zigzag pattern on the entire north side. The engraving, which is around 6500 years old, is the largest snake engraving in the megalithic world. Further incisions consist of crosses and shields .
folklore
According to a local legend, a fairy promised marriage to a young man on the condition that he carried the stone to the other side of the valley before midnight. It failed and the stone is where she left it. The menhir has been classified as a monument historique since 1941 . credentials
- Grande Pierre levée de la Bretellière
literature
- Michel Gruet: Inventaire des monuments mégalithiques du Maine-et-Loire. 1967.
Web links
- Description Engl. and pictures
- Description French and pictures
- New engravings
- Menhir dit La Grande Pierre Levée in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)
Coordinates: 47 ° 6 '15.1 " N , 1 ° 2' 8.9" W.