Dolmen des Cloups
MonumentHidden Treasure
Dolmen des Cloups, located in Ginouillac (Département 46), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Ginouillac, Département 46, Occitanie
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 44.7239, 1.5366
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00095097
The Cloups dolmen at Ginouillac, a Neolithic relic on the Quercy limestone plateaux, is one of the most intact examples of megalithic culture in the Lot, and has been listed as a Historic Monument since 1973.
History
Standing in the limestone landscape of the Quercy region, a few kilometres from the market town of Ginouillac, the dolmen of Les Cloups is one of those stone silhouettes that intrigue walkers long before they understand its nature. Massive, silent, set as if the rock had always been there, the megalithic structure embodies a funerary and communal tradition that stretches back several millennia before our era, to the Neolithic period. What makes this building so special is above all its location in an area - the Lot department - that is particularly rich in megaliths. The Quercy region once boasted several hundred dolmens, a significant proportion of which were destroyed by farming or looting. The fact that Les Cloups has survived to the present day in a relatively well-preserved state is a remarkable achievement in itself, and one that was recognised in November 1973 when it was granted protection as a Historic Monument. The visitor experience is intimate and timeless. No heavy tourist infrastructure stands between the visitor and the stone. You approach the dolmen in the midst of a natural environment dominated by downy oaks, junipers and the white limestone outcrops characteristic of the Lot causse. The grazing late afternoon light reveals the grain of the slabs and accentuates the sober majesty of the whole. The dolmen at Les Cloups will appeal to prehistory enthusiasts and walkers looking for an authentic insight into France's deep past. Photographers and watercolourists will find the contrast between the thousand-year-old stone and the surrounding garrigue a motif of dry, melancholy beauty. For families, it's a rare opportunity to explain to children, in a tangible and tangible way, what "five thousand years of history" means.
Architecture
The Cloups dolmen has the classic morphology of the single-chamber dolmens typical of the Quercy and neighbouring Périgord. It is made up of several orthostats in local limestone, probably four to six in number, arranged in a rectangle or trapezoid to form a burial chamber closed at the sides and bottom. One or two massive roof slabs, laid horizontally on the vertical uprights, formed the roof of the whole. Access to the chamber was through an opening at one end, sometimes closed by a bedside slab. The materials used were exclusively grey-white limestone from the Causse Quercinois, available in large natural slabs without the need for sophisticated cutting. This sedimentary limestone, which is both resistant and easy to extract by exploiting the stratification joints, is the raw material for almost all the megaliths in the Lot department. The covering table, which could weigh several tonnes, was put in place using earthen or wooden ramps, using civil engineering techniques that are still debated by prehistorians. Originally, the monument would have been covered by a cairn or tumulus that concealed it almost entirely, leaving only the entrance to the chamber visible. Erosion and human activity have gradually denuded the structure, giving it the airy "stone table" appearance familiar to contemporary visitors. This denudation, while altering the original interpretation of the monument, now makes the burial chamber immediately legible, making it easier to understand.
Related Figures
Populations néolithiques du Quercy (bâtisseurs anonymes, Ve-IIIe millénaire av. J.-C.)Érudits des sociétés savantes du Lot (XIXe siècle, inventaire des mégalithes lotois)Administrateurs des Monuments Historiques (arrêté de classement, 5 novembre 1973)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Dolmen des Cloups located?
Dolmen des Cloups is located in Ginouillac, Département 46 department, Occitanie region, France.
Is Dolmen des Cloups open to visitors?
Dolmen des Cloups is currently closed to visitors.