Oppidum de Pech de Maho

Trip No.205  Entry No.96  Date Added: 8th Nov 2020
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Saw from a distance on 14th Sep 2005

Log Text: A large hill, but I got distracted while trying to have a proper look, as there was a large accident being cleared up, and I couldn’t turn down the small road to have a close look.

Dolmen de la Madeleine d’Albesse

Trip No.205  Entry No.97  Date Added: 8th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 3

Log Text: Walk just more than a kilometer southwest along the track along the top of the ridge from the bends in the D.3 road to the north of Monze. The dolmen can then be found in a bank to the left of the trackway, on top of the ridge.

I couldn’t be sure whether the dolmen was made on a natural ridge, or whether there is a large mound built around it, its probably a bit of both. The chamber itself is quite large, but a bit of a wreck these days. It looks to be a sort of V shaped chamber 6 metres in length and up to 3 metres wide and is open to the east at about 118°, which looks right along the valley below the ridge. Its quite a high chamber too, and there would be plenty of room to stand up within it. Unfortunately, although the sides are well defined, there is only one capstone, and this is dislodged to one side, near to the back of the chamber. A few metres to the east of the main chamber is a slab lined pit in the mound, about a metre square and the same deep. Whether this was another part of the original tomb or not, I cannot tell.

I have to say it was a pleasant walk along the ridge despite the intense heat, through lovely smelling pine and juniper scrub, with very pleasant views of rocky hills and vine rich valleys below. There is also lots of exotic insect life up here too, I disturbed a praying mantis at one point, which flew off in a flash of green. Just to the northwest of the dolmen and mound, it looks like there may well be another artificial mound, but this one is very overgrown and impossible to get onto to have a closer look.

Malves Menhir

Trip No.205  Entry No.98  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: This large menhir is to be found a few hundred metres outside the village of Malves-en-Minervois, taking the D.38 road westwards towards Villalier, and just across the river. There is a little parking area, and a signposted walk for about 100 metres to the stone. Just how could I have missed this when I came to look 5 years ago ?

The stone stands proudly on a higher bit of ground above a vineyard, with steps up to the field it is in. It is over 5 metres high (with apparently 4 metres more under the ground), 1.5 metres in width but less than half a metre thick. It was restored in the 1960s and looks to have been mended from three broken pieces, although its possible that the cement like substance is perhaps just filling cracks.

Roque Traoucado

Trip No.205  Entry No.99  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: From the wine village of Villeneuve-Minervois, follow the little windy road northwards for about 4 kilometres into the hills towards Pujol-du-Bosc. This road up into the mountains is now a properly made up road, rather than the dirt track it was 6 years ago. Eventually you will find a parking area and a dolmen sign. Two little signposted walks are arranged, with all sorts of items of interest to see along the way, such as limestone ovens, shepherds huts, and many signs pointing out the various types of vegetation.

From the parking area take the short path to the left of the road, and you soon come to the remains of this dolmen, excavated in 1972. What you find is the remains of a round stone cairn, diameter about 18 metres and encircled by several large upright stones, with the remains of a chamber in the middle. The chamber is 4 metres in length, by 1 metre wide, and slab lined, but there are no capstones. There is an entry corridor, strangely oriented towards the southwest. Amongst items found here during the excavations were copper and bronze bracelets. Dating showed that the tomb was in use for a long time during the third millennium BC.

Dolmen de la Jagartière

Trip No.205  Entry No.100  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 4

Log Text: From the wine village of Villeneuve-Minervois, follow the little windy road northwards for about 4 kilometres into the hills towards Pujol-du-Bosc. This road up into the mountains is now a properly made up road, rather than the dirt track it was 6 years ago. Eventually you will find a parking area and a dolmen sign. Two little signposted walks are arranged, with all sorts of items of interest to see along the way, such as limestone ovens, shepherds huts, and many signs pointing out the various types of vegetation.

From the parking area, take the path to the right from the car park, and after a few hundred metres you will find this splendidly restored dolmen, sitting with wondrous views over the Minervois countryside and the Aude valley to the south. As I sit and write this, theres lots of shouting and horns blowing, is there a hunt on, or is it just shepherds moving their flocks ? The slab sided chamber, 3 metres by 2 metres, is covered with a single large capstone, and has an entry looking over the valley to the southeast at 160°. There is a small cairn surrounding the chamber, of which the excavations showed it to be of diameter only 8.5 metres, with an encircling circle of stones.

It really is superb up here! There's Canigou in the distance to the southeast, and the Meditterranean sea can be seen shimmering on the horizon.

Tombeau de Roland

Trip No.205  Entry No.101  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: Just up the hillside a bit from Dolmen de La Jagartière can be found the Tombeau de Roland. Once thought to be a megalithic tomb, the latest thoughts are that it is nothing more than a place from where a large rock has been quarried. But quite why somebody would come to such a place, far away from any buildings up a hillside, which has several other tombs nearby, I do not know. Surely a source of rock more convenient could have been found.

Menhir dit la Pierre Droite (Villeneuve-Minervois)

Trip No.205  Entry No.102  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Couldn't find on 14th Sep 2005

Log Text: I failed to find this stone on the way down the hill. It is supposedly about 1.5 kilometres from the village of Villeneuve-Minervois, at the side of the road.

Allée Couverte de Saint-Eugène

Trip No.205  Entry No.103  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Passage Grave Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: I have now twice found this only by luck. This time I took a wrong turning (one road too soon) and ended up on a stone track across private land where I could not turn round to go back out, and then I saw a little sign to dolmen, up the hillside I remember. I managed to park the van in a wider part of the track about 500 metres away, and went back on foot to look for the site. Quite how one is meant to get here properly, I do not know !

Up on top of a pine covered hill is an open flattish area, upon which is built this lovely tomb. It has all been much restored, so quite how much is original I do not know. The first thing you see is a circular stone wall containing a stone cairn, about a metre high and about 25 metres in diameter, with upright slabs every 5 metres or so around its circumference. Within this is the remains of a massive structure, and a partitioned chamber. The main chamber is 15 metres long, lined with large slabs, and opens to the southeast at 155°. At the back end it is 4 metres wide, and 5.5 m from the end is the remnants of a stone partition within which the remains of portal entranceway can be seen. The next section is 6 metres long, tapering to 2.5 metres wide, up to the remains of another partition with entranceway. This leaves just 3 metres of tapering corridor to the entrance in the circular wall, just 1 metre in width. Unfortunately there are no cover stones, and the entrance portals are very damaged, to the extent of being almost non existant. In the stone mound there can be seen the remains of two further intermediate circling walls, the first a U shape around the chamber, and the second a concentric circle within the outside wall.

Morrel das Fadas

Trip No.205  Entry No.104  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Passage Grave Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 14th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 5 Access 4

Log Text: Although within the commune of Pépieux, this tremendous dolmen is actually nearer and easier to find from the village of Siran, from where you take the D.12 road east for a kilometre or so, and the mound is on the right, on top of a large natural pine covered hill amongst the vines. It is all rather obvious, and has a little parking area and signpost.

By far the biggest dolmen structure in the south of France, I cannot say how much of the hillock it is built on is natural, and how much is its tumulus, but nevertheless, it is a big structure. The chamber itself is 24 metres in length and up to 4 metres wide, aligned towards the southeast at 145°. This chamber is divided into three sections by lovely partitioned portal stones. The back section is rectangular, 4.5 metres long and 4 metres wide. The marvellous central section is 6.5 metres long, with massive side slab walls 2,5 metres high, which carry the single remaining large capstone (about 5m by 3.5m) well above head height.

Unfortunately the portal stones each side of this central chamber are broken, but enough remains to get a good feel for what was once here, as one of the stones of the southeastern portal is almost complete. The 13 metres of entranceway is made with alternating slabs and dry stone walling, and narrows down to about 2 metres wide at the entrance. This really is a fantastic place to visit, but difficult to photograph because of its size and all the surrounding trees.

Morrel das Fadas replica

Trip No.205  Entry No.105  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Modern Stone Circle etc Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: A small representation of the dolmen des Fades has been built near the roundabout outside the campsite at Pepieux. Excellent.

Morrel das Fadas

Trip No.205  Entry No.106  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Passage Grave Country: France (Languedoc:Aude (11))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 5 Access 4

Log Text: Visited again to get some pictures in the bright morning sun, although the sun doesn’t make it through the trees.

Dolmen de Lauriol 1

Trip No.205  Entry No.107  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: From Siran, follow the signs to the Curiosité de L'Auriol, which takes you on a windy road north up onto the hills. The Curiosité is a weird bit of road where things seem to roll uphill - a trick of the eye over gravity. From here take the road left for half a kilometre to a big house (being done up in 2005) in amongst pine trees, and go beyond this to a track down to the left. Follow this track, and turn right at the junction with the trackway from the big house, then after a couple of hundred metres, the Grand dolmen de Lauriol is obvious at the left of the path.

Its a bit of a wreck, and becoming overgrown, but the 4m by 2m chamber, still within a mound of stones, is worth a look. The large capstone is now broken and fallen off to the side. This seems a good candidate for a bit of restoration. There are beautiful views from up here on the southern edge of the Montagne Noire.

Dolmen de Lauriol 2

Trip No.205  Entry No.108  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Couldn't find on 15th Sep 2005

Log Text: Nearby to the Grand dolmen de Lauriol are supposedly two more, smaller and more degraded dolmens. I had a good look around, but much of the land round here has been recently fenced off and I could find nothing obvious amongst the prickly scrub and undergrowth.

Dolmen de Lauriol 3

Trip No.205  Entry No.109  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Couldn't find on 15th Sep 2005

Log Text: Nearby to the Grand dolmen de Lauriol are supposedly two more, smaller and more degraded dolmens. I had a good look around, but much of the land round here has been recently fenced off and I could find nothing obvious amongst the prickly scrub and undergrowth.

Mousse Dolmen 1

Trip No.205  Entry No.110  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Couldn't find on 15th Sep 2005

Log Text: Taking the track further beyond the Grand dolmen de Lauriol, and after eight or nine hundred metres the first dolmen de Mousse is supposedly to be found, just to the left of the track. However, much of the land round here has been recently fenced off and I could find nothing obvious amongst the prickly scrub and undergrowth. Two hundred metres further, to the right and 40 metres from the track is a second then third dolmen. I had no chance of finding these, although I did find the dry limestone chasm known as the Combe des Mortes, named as such because of the numbers of dolmens here ! Almost anything in this broken limestone landscape could have been a dolmen at some time in the past, but it is extremely difficult to find a way about here other than the trackway because of the vicious scrub growing over everything. After an hour or so vain searching about I decided I could spend no more time here finding nothing, and decided to return to the van and move on.

Dolmen des Lacs 1

Trip No.205  Entry No.111  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 3 Access 3

Log Text: From the intriguing and lovely little historic village of Minerve, take the D.147 road to the northwest, passing over the bridge and past the big car parks. The dolmens are signposted from here. The road zig-zags up the hillside for a kilometre or two and then levels out a bit. Continue for three or four kilometres, past the water reservoir, and eventually you will find a dirt track on the left, with a large stone with the word dolmens painted on it. Park somewhere, then follow this track on foot for a couple of hundred metres. About 100 metres before the track splits, to find this dolmen go into the scrubland to the right for about 60 metres, where the remains of the dolmen can be found, quite well hidden behind some little oak trees.

What remains is a fairly large round mound of stones, about 20 metres in diameter, with some evidence of an encircling peristalith of radial facing stones. The chamber in the middle is about 4 metres long by 2 metres wide, facing southeast at 155°, and has most of the side and back slabs still in place, but broken. The capstone is still here, but pushed off to the side, and the largest western side slab possibly had a nice hole in it. Unfortunately, this dolmen is all crumbling away and getting a bit overgrown.

Dolmen des Lacs 2

Trip No.205  Entry No.112  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 3

Log Text: From the intriguing and lovely little historic village of Minerve, take the D.147 road to the northwest, passing over the bridge and past the big car parks. The dolmens are signposted from here. The road zig-zags up the hillside for a kilometre or two and then levels out a bit. Continue for three or four kilometres, past the water reservoir, and eventually you will find a dirt track on the left, with a large stone with the word dolmens painted on it. Park somewhere, then follow this track on foot for a couple of hundred metres.

The track then splits, take the right track upwards for about three hundred more hundred metres, where to the left of the path the remains of this dolmen are visible. It sits in a mound of loose stone, about 18 metres in diameter, with some raised larger stones, set radially to the chamber, forming a partial circle around it near to the edge. The dolmen is in the centre, with a single capstone sat on top of a large back stone, and several side stones. The chamber is high enough to stand in, and about 4 m long by 2 m wide. Beyond this is an entry passageway, making a total length of about 7 metres, lined with slabs at its sides, and opening to the southeast on 165°.

The views from up here, over the plain of the Aude river are spectacular. I would imagine that on a clear day, the Mediterranean sea and the sacred mountain of Canigou are clearly visible.

Dolmen des Lacs 3

Trip No.205  Entry No.113  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 3

Log Text: From the intriguing and lovely little historic village of Minerve, take the D.147 road to the northwest, passing over the bridge and past the big car parks. The dolmens are signposted from here. The road zig-zags up the hillside for a kilometre or two and then levels out a bit. Continue for three or four kilometres, past the water reservoir, and eventually you will find a dirt track on the left, with a large stone with the word dolmens painted on it. Park somewhere, then follow this track on foot for a couple of hundred metres. The track then splits, take the right track upwards for a about four hundred metres, passing dolmen 2 on the left, and about a hundred metres further, after crossing a little ravine, you will find dolmen number 3.

It is smaller than dolmen 2, with a single capstone sat on top of two side slabs and a backstone, forming a chamber 2 metres long by 1,5 metres in width, again open to the southeast at 145°. The dolmen sits within a round mass of stones, but has no discernible entry passageway or encircling ring of stones. Dolmens 2 and 3 can be seen from each other. There are possibly the remains of several more wrecked dolmens within this area.

Statue menhir de Picarel

Trip No.205  Entry No.114  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Sculptured Stone Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: Going north along the D.169 road from the Col de la Bane to the south of Fraisse-sur-Agout, and at a large corner in the road is a little lane to the west signed to Haut Picarel. About 300 metres down this track, and into a wood, you will find the menhir beside the trackway.

This finely shaped menhir stands over 2 metres tall, and looks out down the valley to the southwest. The only obvious markings and carvings on the stone are relatively modern, a deep cut halfway up, and some circles in the upper part. The original statue-menhir carvings have become so faint as to be almost invisible these days, although 180 years ago, when this chap was first discovered, they were clear enough. With a lot of will power, I was able to make out its belt around the back, but nothing else, although the stone itself is very obviously shaped into the right form. It was very difficult to photograph, with the strong sunlight coming thought the trees creating dappled shadows on the stone.

Where I was parked up here, there was a lady sat in a field reading, with several dogs, in amongst a large flock of sheep and goats. I assume she was the shepherdess, as the dogs were not at all concerned, nor were the sheep.

Statue menhir de La Pomarède

Trip No.205  Entry No.115  Date Added: 9th Nov 2020
Site Type: Sculptured Stone Country: France (Languedoc:Hérault (34))
Visited: Yes on 15th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: Right outside the tourist office at Fraisse-sur-Agout, next to a wall behind a big tree display thing, is the top 90 cm of this statue menhir which must have once been 2 metres tall. It is very difficult to make out any markings, with it being in dark shadow and very moss covered. I am starting to think that museums are the best places for viewing these statue-menhirs.