|
There are remains of great civilisations in the distant past, still to be found in this continent. One can cite the impressive megaliths at Avebury and Stonehenge, the monuments and circles in remoter parts of these islands - in Cornwall, Orkney, Wales and elsewhere. Nothing however, prepared me whilst on holiday last summer, for the grand scale of monuments - menhirs, dolmens and tumuli, which I found in the region of South Brittany. I had been cycling around Carnac, La Trinité sur Mer and Locmariaquer when I came across row-upon-row of upright stones, each about 8 feet or more in height and in alignments virtually from horizon to horizon, though interrupted by roads and buildings. These stones, called 'menhirs' are monuments on a grand scale, the legacies of an ancient and sophisticated civilisation. The earliest ones have been (conservatively) dated to about 3100BC - which coincides approximately with the estimate for the early building of Stonehenge. Excavations have taken place over the years and many finely wrought tools and other artefacts have been discovered. In addition to the standing stones there are some remarkable tumuli and dolmen (considered as burial chambers), perhaps even older than the menhirs. Some engravings have been found but may be confused with the works of later societies, Roman and early Christian, but notably the Druids who took over many of these sites. There are supposed to be illustrations of druidic rituals, and tales of human and animal sacrifice carved and engraved on some of the monuments. Skills of the megalithic builders are still to be fully recognised. The numbers in the alignments of stones estimates vary between 2700 and 3000. They are spread over a distance of 4 kilometres at Kermario, Menec and Kerlescan. There are examples elsewhere and there is belief that many others have been removed over the centuries and used for building and road materials. The megaliths are vestiges of a highly developed neolithic civilisation, and despite our own arrogance and apparent sophistication we are as yet unable fully to penetrate its mysteries. When confronted with these strange stones questions arise such as: why they were constructed what were their uses and how they came into being. These matters are only haltingly theorised about and inevitably great errors in judgment occur. By the timescale mentioned (some put it even further back at 4500BC), Christianity is relatively young. These monuments were set up by the little known peoples who preceded the Gauls. They must have had a considerable degree of integration and co-operation to be able to move and set upright stones which weigh up to 350 tons. For comparison - the Luxor Obelisk in the Place de la Concorde, Paris only weighs 220 tons. The grand menhir brisé to be seen at nearby Locmariaquer is now fallen and in 5 pieces, 4 of which are still in situ. It was considered when vertical to have been 64 feet high and weighing approximately 347 tons. In an experiment in 1979, using wooden rollers, it took 260 people to raise one menhir of modest size! The famous French engineer, writer and management consultant Henri Fayol, whose influential work Administration générale et industrielle analysed co-operative business activities in the early 20th century declared that the management function in summary was to plan, organise, motivate and control. With what sophistication and logistical wizardry was it possible to command, keep at the task and fulfil the objectives in those neolithic times is difficult to conjecture. There are 20 menhirs in the locality which are over 20 feet in height! The work undoubtedly went on over a considerable period of time and demanded a high degree of co-ordination, communication and control, spanning over many generations. In all cases the community had to have its personal, survival, social and spiritual needs sustained. Our present large-scale projects are as nothing compared to these monumental activities. In Carnac itself there is an interesting church, standing on a site of Christian worship which has been in existence for over 1800 years. It is the parish church dedicated to St Cornély who, amongst other things was the patron saint of horned cattle. As for Cornelius himself - he lived about 200-253AD, was elected pope in March 251, the see of Rome having been vacant for 14 months. His election precipitated the schism of Novatian in the year 251, whereupon Cornelius convened a synod of 60 bishops. The Pope's discipline was approved, the charges by Novation were exonerated. The Novations were excommunicated. Letters of Cornelius on the schism may still exist and are an important source for the condition of the church in the 3rd century. He was banished to Civita Vecchio in 253 where he died in captivity. His Saints day is 16th September. In the church itself there is beautiful wrought ironwork for the pulpit and altar screen in magnificently decorated blue and gold. As the latinised 'Cornelius' the saint only briefly became Pope (251-253AD). He is quaintly depicted outside his church flanked by horned cattle who wander among the local menhirs. The church is in this, and in other ways, most eclectic in its fusion with pre-Christian ideas and perhaps that is one of its considerable strengths and enduring qualities. The idea certainly disturbed my holiday - an enthralling change from merely cycling along! Rod Dawson |
|
page last updated 16 MAY 2002 |
