Pierre à Vinaigre
The Pierre à Vinaigre ( German "Essigstein" ) is a menhir southwest of Nouzilly in the Touraine in the Indre-et-Loire department in France .
The remains of the enclosure of an extensive camp, probably of Gallic origin, known as "Les Fossés de César" , can be seen in the form of wide ditches bordered by an embankment. The camp is bounded in the southwest by the valley of Choisille. A Gallo-Roman site was also found in “Longueville” (west of Nouzilly).
The small menhir stands in a field about in the middle of the enclosure, in the hamlet of Le Hallier .
The menhir is one of the vinegar stones. The name Pierre à Vinegre originally comes from the common custom of celebrating libations on the stone. The modern corruption of the old custom was to press the victim's nose onto the stone so that he could smell the vinegar. This tradition was established in France, especially in the Middle Ages , in many places ( Grand Menhir de la Garde ), Croix de la Pierre à Vinaigre (Crotelles).
literature
- Gérard Cordier: Inventaire des mégalithes de la France, I. Indre-et-Loire 1963
Web links
Coordinates: 47 ° 32 '4.8 " N , 0 ° 43' 32.9" E