Menhir de la Nivardière
MonumentHidden Treasure
Menhir de la Nivardière, located in Tripleville (Loir-et-Cher), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Tripleville, Loir-et-Cher, Centre-Val de Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.9442, 1.4906
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00098625
A stone sentinel since the Neolithic period in the Loir-et-Cher region, the Nivardière menhir watches over the plains of Tripleville in the Beauce region. It was listed as a Historic Monument in 1889.
© Wikimedia Commons / Wikipedia
History
In the heart of the Loir-et-Cher region, in the peaceful village of Tripleville, the menhir of La Nivardière stands as a silent testimony to several millennia of human history. This standing stone, erected by Neolithic man at a time when the Loir valley was already densely inhabited, is one of a fascinating group of megaliths that discreetly dot the landscape of the Beauce and Vendôme regions. What makes this menhir truly singular is the evocative power of its presence in an area where prehistoric traces are rare. Unlike the large megalithic concentrations in Brittany, the menhirs in the Centre-Val de Loire region are isolated relics that are all the more precious, markers of a sacred territory or ritual practices of which we still only have a tiny glimpse. The menhir at La Nivardière, standing in a typical agricultural setting in the Beauce region, retains the mysterious austerity that characterises the oldest monoliths. The visit offers a rare experience of contemplation, far removed from the usual tourist crowds. Faced with this mass of siliceous rock or limestone fashioned by anonymous hands, visitors become aware of the extraordinary continuity of the human gaze on this same landscape over the last six thousand years. The low-angled morning or evening light reveals the roughness of the stone, giving the whole a particularly striking atmosphere. The countryside setting of Tripleville, a rural commune in the Loir-et-Cher region, adds to the authenticity of this discovery. There are no tourist attractions here: the menhir exists in its natural environment, in the middle of fields and sunken lanes, as it always has. It is precisely this sobriety that makes it a site of considerable heritage and emotional value for lovers of history and prehistory.
Architecture
The Nivardière menhir belongs to the category of standing stones, the monoliths characteristic of Neolithic megalithic culture. Typical of the menhirs found in the Centre-Val de Loire region, it is a roughly squared block of natural stone, standing vertically and stabilised at its base by a block of stones and earth. Menhirs in this region are generally carved from the local rock available - Turonian limestone, sandstone or flint - giving each one a colouration and texture specific to the surrounding subsoil. The general morphology follows the canon of the menhir: a slender silhouette, tapering slightly towards the top, with a rectangular or ovoid cross-section. The dimensions, common for menhirs in Loir-et-Cher, are probably between 1.50 and 3 metres high above ground, with a width at the base of around 0.80 to 1.20 metres. The surface of the stone, which has been exposed to the elements for thousands of years, has lichens, mosses and micro-cells characteristic of the long weathering of limestone rocks in a temperate environment. No engraved ornamentation has been officially documented on the stone, which distinguishes it from the ornate menhirs of Armorique or the Midi. However, this formal sobriety is representative of the megalithic tradition in and around the Paris Basin, where standing stones draw their strength from the simple gesture of vertical erection, an affirmation of human presence in a conquered landscape.
Related Figures
Les bâtisseurs néolithiques anonymes du Ve ou IVe millénaire av. J.-C., communauté agricole locale dont le menhir constitue l'unique témoignageLes antiquaires vendômois du XIXe siècle, érudits locaux ayant signalé et documenté le monument avant sa protectionProsper Mérimée, inspecteur général des Monuments historiques, dont l'action nationale a rendu possible les classements de 1889Les membres de la Société archéologique du Vendômois, acteurs de l'inventaire préhistorique régional au XIXe siècle
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Menhir de la Nivardière located?
Menhir de la Nivardière is located in Tripleville, Loir-et-Cher department, Centre-Val de Loire region, France.
Is Menhir de la Nivardière open to visitors?
Menhir de la Nivardière is currently closed to visitors.