Carnac Megaliths

Attribution:

Chris (archi3d)

Carnac

France

Key Dates

The stones were erected around 3300 BC, but some date as far back as 4500 BC. The first excavations were carried out in the 1860s.

Key People

Scottish antiquarian James Miln (1819–1881) was the first expert to research the site. In 1875, Miln engaged a local boy, Zacharie Le Rouzic (1864–1939) as his assistant, and Zacharie later became director of the site’s museum and an expert on megaliths in the region. Alexander Thom worked at the site with his son Archie from 1970 to 1974. Studies by Pierre Méreaux, who spent 30 years researching the stones, are also well known.

The Carnac stones are a collection of more than 3000 megalithic standing stones found at various sites around the French village of Carnac in Brittany. It is the largest collection of its type in the world. The stones were cut from local rock and put in place by the pre-Celtic people of Brittany.

Local tradition has it that they stand in straight lines because they were once a Roman legion, turned to stone by the mythical Arthurian magician Merlin. A similar Christian legend is that the stones were once pagan soldiers, turned to stone by Pope Cornelius.

Admission Fee

Admission Free

Related Websites

Office de tourisme de Carnac (English)

Images