Menhir dénommé Pierre Longue
MonumentHidden Treasure
Menhir dénommé Pierre Longue, located in Gennes (Maine-et-Loire), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Gennes, Maine-et-Loire, Pays de la Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.3449, -0.2485
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00109125
Sentinelle de pierre dressée aux confins du Val d'Anjou, la Pierre Longue de Gennes est l'un des menhirs les mieux conservés du Maine-et-Loire, témoignage silencieux d'une humanité vieille de cinq millénaires.
History
In the heart of the Pays de la Loire region, between the gentle Loire Valley and the limestone soils of the Saumur region, the menhir known as Pierre Longue stands with a quiet authority that the centuries have not diminished. This standing stone, probably erected in the Late Neolithic or Early Bronze Age, belongs to a constellation of megaliths that make the Gennes region one of the richest prehistoric areas in Anjou. What makes the Pierre Longue so remarkable is first and foremost its raw, almost insolent presence in the surrounding cultivated landscape. The menhirs of this region are derived from the local geological substratum, principally the schist and sandstone of the Armorican Massif, whose veins outcrop less than thirty kilometres to the west. The fact that such a huge mass of stone could have been transported, straightened and stabilised by metal-free farming societies bears witness to a collective organisation and technical know-how that are truly admirable. The experience of visiting the site is that of an intimate encounter with time. Unlike the great megalithic necropolises of Brittany, the Pierre Longue is not drowned in a flood of tourists; it can be discovered in peace and quiet, often alone with the visitor, which reinforces its emotional impact. The low-angled morning or evening light, particularly in summer, reveals the textures and lichens that colonise the rock, making each visit a unique photographic experience. The archaeological context of Gennes also adds considerably to the visit: the municipality is also home to Gallo-Roman remains, including thermal baths and a partially excavated amphitheatre, offering an exceptional journey through several millennia of human presence in the loop of the river.
Architecture
The Pierre Longue belongs to the category of solitary menhirs, the most refined form of megalithic architecture: a slab or monolithic block extracted from a natural quarry, roughly shaped and planted vertically in the ground. In the megalithic tradition of the Loire, these standing stones are generally between 2 and 5 metres high above the ground, with a third more rooted in the substrate to ensure the monument's stability over thousands of years. The rock used is probably a metamorphic schist or sandstone typical of the geological formations of south-west Anjou, chosen for its resistance to bad weather and its ability to remain relatively vertical over the long term. The silhouette of the Pierre Longue probably has a slightly tapered shape, wider at the base and tapering towards the top, a configuration typical of Anjou menhirs, which sought to embody an aspiration towards the sky, whether cosmological or symbolic. The orientation of the menhir, as with most of its regional counterparts, is not random: studies carried out on megalithic sites in the Loire basin suggest frequent alignments with sunrises and sunsets at the solstices and equinoxes, a hypothesis that gives these monuments the dimension of a rudimentary astronomical observatory as much as a territorial or ritual marker.
Related Figures
Communautés néolithiques angevines (bâtisseurs présumés, vers 3500-2000 av. J.-C.)Érudits de la Société des sciences, lettres et arts de Saumur (XIXe siècle, premiers recenseurs)Casimir Chevalier (archéologue tourangeau, contributeur aux inventaires mégalithiques régionaux)Inspecteurs des Monuments Historiques (auteurs de l'arrêté d'inscription de 1982)
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Menhir dénommé Pierre Longue located?
Menhir dénommé Pierre Longue is located in Gennes, Maine-et-Loire department, Pays de la Loire region, France.
Is Menhir dénommé Pierre Longue open to visitors?
Menhir dénommé Pierre Longue is currently closed to visitors.
