Borne milliaire de Quillidien dite Croaz-ar-Peulven
MonumentHidden Treasure
Borne milliaire de Quillidien dite Croaz-ar-Peulven, located in Plouigneau (Département 29), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Plouigneau, Département 29, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.5712, -3.6809
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00090254
Sentinelle de pierre plantée au cœur du Finistère, cette borne milliaire gallo-romaine de Quillidien témoigne, avec une rare éloquence, de la présence romaine en Armorique il y a près de deux millénaires.
History
Standing in the countryside around Plouigneau, in the heart of the Léon region of Finistère, the Quillidien milestone - known locally by the evocative name of Croaz-ar-Peulven, "the cross of the pillar" in Breton - is one of the few surviving milestones in Brittany. This massive, yet unobtrusive, carved granite shaft is part of a road network that once criss-crossed the whole of Roman Gaul, linking the province's major cities to the imperial capital. What makes this monument so unique is above all its dual identity: an administrative object and a symbolic milestone in Romanisation, the milestone was both a measuring tool - indicating distances in thousands of Roman paces - and a medium for imperial propaganda, as it bore the name of the reigning emperor. Surviving seventeen centuries in Breton soil, battered by the Atlantic winds and the rain of Finistère, is as much a feat as it is a miracle. A visit to Croaz-ar-Peulven is both a modest and striking experience. You approach it on foot, through a landscape of Leonard hedgerows dotted with embankments, gorse and chestnut trees. The monument imposes its vertical presence in this horizontal setting: a slightly frustrated cylinder of grey granite, whose surface still reveals traces of Latin inscriptions eroded by time. The Breton name Croaz-ar-Peulven reveals a second medieval life: like many megaliths and standing stones, the stone was probably Christianised in the Middle Ages, topped or marked with a cross, a common practice in Brittany to neutralise "pagan stones" while preserving their tutelary virtues in the landscape. This superimposition of sacralities - Roman and then Christian - makes it an object of anthropological as well as archaeological curiosity. Protected as a Historic Monument since 1956, the Quillidien milestone will appeal to Roman archaeology enthusiasts as much as to lovers of Brittany's discreet heritage, far from the tourist crowds. It is an invitation to meditate on time, on empires that pass and stones that remain.
Architecture
The Quillidien milestone takes the typical form of these Roman monuments: a cylindrical shaft made of local granite, cut from the mass, whose height - probably between 1.50 and 2.50 metres above ground, in line with Gallic milestone standards - gives it an instantly recognisable silhouette in the flat landscape of the Léonard bocage. The granite used probably came from local quarries in the Armorican massif, the material of choice for Roman craftsmen in Brittany due to its abundance and strength. The morphology of the bollard follows the canons in force in the Empire: a cylindrical body resting on a slightly wider base, sometimes set into the ground to ensure stability, and an outer surface initially polished to accommodate the inscriptions. These inscriptions, engraved in Roman capitals, usually included the name and titles of the reigning emperor, the distance in miles from the main reference town, and sometimes the name of the legate or provincial governor responsible for the roadworks. Millennia of erosion and Brittany's climatic conditions - frequent rainfall, winter frost, persistent lichens - have greatly altered the legibility of the inscriptions, making it difficult to accurately identify the imperial reign without detailed epigraphic analysis. Today, the surface of the granite has a grey-green patina that is characteristic of stones exposed to the open air in Finistère, giving the whole piece an appearance that is both austere and deeply rooted in its terroir.
Related Figures
Les Osismes — peuple gaulois romanisé dont le territoire englobait Plouigneau, maîtres d'œuvre indigènes de la romanisation localeL'Empereur Hadrien (76-138 ap. J.-C.) — grand réformateur des voies romaines de Gaule, sous le règne duquel de nombreuses bornes armoricaines furent érigéesSeptime Sévère (145-211 ap. J.-C.) — rénovateur du réseau routier impérial, dont le nom figure sur plusieurs milliaires bretonsLes membres de la Société archéologique du Finistère (XIXe s.) — érudits qui redécouvrirent et documentèrent les vestiges gallo-romains de la régionAndré Mussat — historien de l'art breton qui contribua à la valorisation du patrimoine gallo-romain armoricain au XXe siècle
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Borne milliaire de Quillidien dite Croaz-ar-Peulven located?
Borne milliaire de Quillidien dite Croaz-ar-Peulven is located in Plouigneau, Département 29 department, Bretagne region, France.
Is Borne milliaire de Quillidien dite Croaz-ar-Peulven open to visitors?
Borne milliaire de Quillidien dite Croaz-ar-Peulven is currently closed to visitors.
