Dolmen de Cantegrel
MonumentHidden Treasure
Dolmen de Cantegrel, located in Saint-Chamassy (Dordogne), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Saint-Chamassy, Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 44.8607, 0.9193
- Mérimée Reference
- PA24000070
A megalithic vestige of the Périgord Noir region, the Cantegrel dolmen's limestone slabs stand in a wooded setting in the Vézère valley, silent testimony to the Neolithic builders of the Dordogne.
History
In the heart of the Périgord Noir, in the commune of Saint-Chamassy, the Cantegrel dolmen stands out as one of the most discreet and moving prehistoric funerary monuments in the Dordogne. Nestling in a landscape of oak and chestnut trees, just a few kilometres from the decorated caves that have made the Vézère valley famous the world over, this megalithic monument is one of a constellation of prehistoric sites that make this region one of the densest archaeological areas in Europe. What makes the Cantegrel dolmen particularly precious is precisely its sobriety. Far from the great megalithic complexes of Brittany or the Causses, it represents the type of collective burial that the Neolithic farming communities of the Périgord erected for their dead between 4,000 and 6,000 years ago. Its slabs of local limestone, patiently assembled without mortar or metal tools, bear witness to a remarkably efficient architectural skill that has survived the millennia. A visit to this site, listed as a Historic Monument since 2008, is an intimate and contemplative experience. Far from the crowds that flock to Les Eyzies-de-Tayac or Lascaux, here visitors can find themselves alone in front of the standing stones, giving free rein to their imagination as they reconstruct the funerary rituals and beliefs of the first farmers of the Périgord. The surrounding vegetation, alternating between clearings and undergrowth, reinforces this feeling of communion with a past that is deeply rooted in the land of the Dordogne. The natural setting is itself an invitation to stroll. The rolling countryside around Saint-Chamassy, punctuated by limestone cliffs and steep-sided rivers, has changed little since the Neolithic period. It is in this unspoilt environment that the Cantegrel dolmen displays all its evocative power, reminding us that the Périgord was, long before the medieval castles and bastides, a land inhabited and sacred since the dawn of time.
Architecture
The Cantegrel dolmen belongs to the classic architectural type of single-chamber dolmen, characteristic of the megalithic funerary monuments of Périgord and Quercy. It is made up of several orthostats - vertical slabs of local limestone - which form the side walls and base of the burial chamber, topped by one or more horizontal cover slabs forming the table. This constructional system, with its unstoppable architectural logic, creates a closed interior space designed to house the remains and funerary offerings. The materials used were exclusively local: Périgord limestone, abundant in the region's cliffs and plateaux, provided Neolithic builders with a rock that was both solid and relatively easy to cut according to its natural cleavage planes. The slabs generally have a rough, weathered surface, covered with grey and orange lichens that accentuate their ancestral appearance. The average dimensions of this type of monument in the Dordogne vary between 2 and 4 metres in length for the burial chamber, with a height under the table rarely exceeding 1.5 metres. Like most of the dolmens in the Périgord, the Cantegrel monument was originally covered by a cairn or earth mound, which concealed the structure and gave it a visible tumulus shape in the landscape. This protective mantle has almost entirely disappeared under the effect of erosion and human activity, leaving the chamber exposed today in its architectural bareness. The orientation of the chamber, often facing east or eastward in monuments from this period, could reflect a solar symbolism linked to the beliefs of Neolithic builders.
Related Figures
Les bâtisseurs néolithiques de la vallée de la Vézère (vers 3500-2500 av. J.-C.), communautés paysannes anonymes qui érigèrent le monumentGabriel de Mortillet (1821-1898), préhistorien français qui contribua à classer et étudier les mégalithes du Sud-OuestDenis Peyrony (1869-1954), archéologue périgourdin pionnier qui inventoria de nombreux sites préhistoriques de DordogneAndré Leroi-Gourhan (1911-1986), préhistorien dont les travaux sur les sépultures néolithiques éclairent le contexte funéraire des dolmens périgourdins
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Dolmen de Cantegrel located?
Dolmen de Cantegrel is located in Saint-Chamassy, Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
Is Dolmen de Cantegrel open to visitors?
Dolmen de Cantegrel is currently closed to visitors.
