Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue
MonumentHidden Treasure
Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue, located in Plémet (Département 22), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Plémet, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.1563, -2.5586
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089409
Sentinelle de granit du XVIIIe siècle, la Pierre Longue veille sur les chemins de Plémet depuis des générations. Cette croix de chemin bretonne, classée Monument Historique en 1927, incarne la ferveur populaire et l'art statuaire rural des Côtes-d'Armor.
History
In the heart of inland Brittany, in the Loudéac region, stands the Pierre Longue, a roadside cross whose very name evokes a past much older than the 18th century to which its current form is attributed. Standing at the crossroads of the sunken lanes that peasants once used to reach market towns and villages, this monument bears witness to a practice deeply rooted in Breton culture: erecting crosses at crossroads to protect travellers and sanctify the countryside. What distinguishes the Pierre Longue from the more ordinary wayside crosses is precisely the name that precedes it. In Brittany, the name refers to prehistoric standing stones, menhirs, which the collective memory finds hard to shake off. It is highly likely that the cross was erected on a pre-existing megalithic site, or at least that local tradition has preserved the memory of an ancient stone in this location. This palimpsest of the sacred - from the menhir to the Christian cross - is a remarkable feature of the Armorican countryside. Carved from the grey granite typical of the Côtes-d'Armor region, the cross features a slender shaft whose silhouette stands out with authority against the Breton sky. The quality of its sculpture, modest but meticulous, illustrates the skills of the local stonemasons of the 18th century, often anonymous craftsmen who formed the fabric of the rural parishes. The Christ on the Cross and sometimes the Virgin Mary or a saint engraved on the shaft bear witness to a popular devotional iconography. A visit to La Pierre Longue is like taking a break from the past, in a landscape of hedges of oak trees and the wet meadows of central Brittany. The setting is one of austere beauty, inviting contemplation. Lovers of rural heritage will find an eloquent synthesis between the Breton megalithic substratum and the Catholic piety that has shaped these lands for centuries. Photographers and local history buffs will not be disappointed by the low-angled light of late afternoon, which reveals the full texture of the granite.
Architecture
The Pierre Longue belongs to the type of granite monolithic cross, typical of 18th-century Breton stonework. It consists of a vertical shaft with a slightly tapering quadrangular cross-section. Its height, probably between two and three metres excluding the base, gives it the slender silhouette that its name evokes. The shaft rests on a massive plinth with a wider base, often with several projections, designed to ensure the stability of the whole and to raise the cross so that it can be seen from the surrounding paths. The cross, proportionate in size to the shaft, has the typical features of popular religious sculpture in the Côtes-d'Armor region: the arms end in slight square or slightly curved widenings. The body of Christ is sculpted in bas-relief on the main face, the anatomical modelling treated with the sobriety typical of rural craftsmen of the period, more attached to devotional expression than to academic realism. The opposite side may feature geometric decoration or a Marian figure, depending on the region. The bluish-grey granite used is extracted from local quarries in the Armorican massif, a material that is omnipresent in the traditional buildings of central Brittany. Its grainy texture and resistance to weathering explain the generally good conservation of this type of work despite several centuries of exposure to Breton winds and rain. Traces of wear on the base bear witness to the repeated passage of generations of worshippers who came to pray or leave floral offerings at the foot of the cross.
Related Figures
Évêque de Saint-Brieuc du XVIIIe siècle — autorité ecclésiastique sous laquelle furent érigées ou rénovées de nombreuses croix de chemin du diocèseArtisans tailleurs de pierre anonymes de la région de Loudéac — façonneurs du granite breton au XVIIIe siècleParoissiens et notables de Plémet — commanditaires probables du renouvellement de la croix au XVIIIe siècleCorrespondants de la Commission des Monuments Historiques des Côtes-du-Nord — responsables de l'inventaire ayant conduit à l'inscription de 1927Chouans de la région de Loudéac — gardiens informels du patrimoine religieux breton pendant la Révolution
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue located?
Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue is located in Plémet, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue built?
Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue open to visitors?
Croix de chemin dite La Pierre Longue is currently closed to visitors.
