Dolmen d'Ors dit la Piare

Trip No.203  Entry No.247  Date Added: 22nd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Yes on 4th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: Remains of a once fairly large burial mound with several chambers contained within it, now fairly well destroyed, on the southern tip of the Ile d’Oleron, within the community of Le Château-d'Oléron. The remains of this dolmen are easily found, but not signposted, right beside the seawall in a little picnic area right at the southeastern tip of Ile d’Oleron where the road bridge makes landfall. If you get to the first building (a restaurant) from the bridge, you have already passed it.

The remains here consist of an approximately triangular capstone, sides of length 4 metres, and about a metre thick. Perhaps there are more stones underneath, and built into the sea wall. The stone is broken into two pieces. Closer inspection shows there to be a few other large stones in the vicinity of the capstone, now covered by land and the sea wall. Just on the sea side of the wall is the possible remains of another dolmen, or a broken off part of the first, which seems to be a bit of capstone sitting on the beach, surrounded by the sea when I arrived. There are no other large rocks like this in the vicinity, and it doesn't look like it should naturally be there. I have discovered since my visit that this indeed did used to be a fairly large mound, with several burial chambers within it.

La Pierre Levée (Oleron)

Trip No.203  Entry No.248  Date Added: 22nd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Couldn't find on 4th Jun 2005

Log Text: I looked all around the Pierre Levée farm, but could see nothing obvious, so I asked. I was told that there was once a dolmen here, but that it had been destroyed, and nothing remains of it today.

Pierres Closes de Charas 1

Trip No.203  Entry No.249  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4

Log Text: Its an odd one this, an oval shaped chamber about 1.7 metres long, 1 metre wide and 0.7 metres high has been carved out of a big block of rock. On top of this is a limestone capstone full of holes and cavities filled with lichens and wild flowers.

It can be found just to the northwest of the historic Naval town of Rochefort, amongst the marshes of the Charente river estuary. Not signposted, but marked on my ign map, I drove along some windy lanes to l'Houmee farm and walked about a kilometre along the track to the southeast and found it easily. The walk to this was really splendid, with Herons, Storks and other birds circling, Frogs making a noisy racket and insects chirrping away.

Pierres Closes de Charas 2

Trip No.203  Entry No.250  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 4 Access 3

Log Text: About three or four hundred metres away from the first Pierres Close, in the middle of a field planted with sweetcorn on a bearing of 295°, can be seen a second large stone. After walking most of the way round the field, I could gain access from the far side. It is another large rock with an oval chamber cut into it, but this time there is only half of the chamber and no capstone remaining.

Two good interesting finds to start the day, I have not seen any dolmens or whatever like this before.

La Pierre Levée (Ardillières)

Trip No.203  Entry No.251  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 4

Log Text: This is a nice pleasant simple little dolmen, just into a field of wheat about 30 metres from a farm track to the south of the village of Ardillières. The capstone sits proudly atop its three upright supports, making a chamber about 2 metres long by 1.5 metres wide and almost 2 metres high. It sits almost at the top of a little hillock in amongst the marais, and can be seen for miles around. On the inside of the chamber, the western side support stone has a fairly clear carving on it of what looks to be an axe, or a crook, perhaps a combination of both, looking rather like a large P, about 45 centimetres tall.

While I was here, a German couple, saying they were father and daughter, about mid twenties, arrived, and we were talking about the dolmen, and I showed them the carving.

Dolmen dit la Pierre Fouquerée

Trip No.203  Entry No.252  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 3

Log Text: This dolmen is not so easy to find as its neighbour, La Pierre Levée, but is in the middle of a field of maize to the west of the farm of Bois des Mottes near the village of Ardillières. The 3 metre by 2 metre limestone capstone sits at an angle on top of one full support stone, and several other broken stones. The chamber is very neatly rectangular, about 3 m by 2 m, and the builders of this one did a very fine job of squaring and lining up the stones.

It has recently had weedkiller applied around the stones, which reside in a little unploughed area, and is obviously relatively well looked after.

Dolmen dit la Pierre-Levée (La Jarne)

Trip No.203  Entry No.253  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Poitou:Charente-Maritime (17))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 2 Access 5

Log Text: This is a nice little dolmen sitting at the edge of the playing fields just outside the back of the church in the village of La Jarne. I am not sure exactly how original this dolmen is, as it looks like it might be a relatively modern reconstruction, and is stood in a gravel area with tell tale plastic sheeting under the new gravel surroundings. I could find no information about it.

Pierre Levée de Chenillée

Trip No.203  Entry No.254  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: This is a nicely smoothed and shaped menhir, which must be about 4.5 metres tall, 2.5 metres wide and 1 metre thick. It is just off a farm track beside the road, and is signposted.

Petites Jaunières

Trip No.203  Entry No.255  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 2

Log Text: Inside a field just to the west of the D.85 road south of Le Givre, but very difficult to get at or take a picture of because of the ditch, fence and hedge surrounding its field ! I estimate it to be about 3 metres tall, and sort of pointed.

Menhir dit le Champ du Rocher

Trip No.203  Entry No.256  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 2 Access 4

Log Text: All I could find where this stone should be was a fallen smoothed stone at the roadside, but I could find nowhere to safely stop and have a good look around. It's about 3 metres long by 2 metres wide.

Dolmen des Pierres Folles du Plessis

Trip No.203  Entry No.257  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 4

Log Text: This possible Angevine dolmen resides in a little wooded picnic area beside the lane to the south of the busy D.949 road to the east of Avrillé. The chamber would have been 5 metres long by 2 metres wide, but the eastern end has collapsed and broken badly, so its difficult to tell. The remains of a 4 metre by 3 metre capstone lie fallen into the chamber, although it is still supported at the western end. The mass of jumbled stone at the east end has obviously been recently broken further, as there are very fresh breakage edges, and drill marksd to be seen, or else it is possible that some new stone has been dumped here.

The nice surprise nature find at this place was a massive, lovely patterned moth sleeping at the bottom of one of the stones.

Cour du Breuil Dolmen

Trip No.203  Entry No.258  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: Right by the roadside, this is a pleasant dolmen to find, with the large skeletal remains standing slightly hidden by a surrounding hedge, from where they suddenly jump out at you as you pass.

The main chamber would have been about 4 metres by 2 metres, but the single remaining capstone covers only half of this, balanced as it is on 3 side slabs at 1.5 metres above the ground. There are plenty of other stones laying around, and the remains are kept in a nicely tended but small gardenlike area.

Dolmen de Savatole 3

Trip No.203  Entry No.260  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: I was not expecting to find these, as I had no previous information about them, and they are not marked on my map. However they are signposted just to the north of the village of Le Bernard, where there is an Ecole des Dolmens! Excellent.

Right beside the little lane to the north of the village, this dolmen would appear to have an oval chamber 3 metres long by 2.5 metres wide, with a single capstone covering it. There are also other stones which suggest an entrance passage, and the floor is paved with large slabs.

Dolmen de Savatole 2

Trip No.203  Entry No.261  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: Like dolmen number 3, this dolmen was excavated in 1906 and has been restored. It is a simple dolmen with a 2.5 by 2.5 metre chamber with a single capstone, these days supported on 3 side stones with remains of a couple more.

Strange thing here is the carved floorstone, which has been cut down to make a flat floor, a bit like the Pierres Closes. I had seen this effect at a couple of dolmens in the Cognac region, but assumed then that it was a modern stabilisation effort.

Dolmen de Savatole 1

Trip No.203  Entry No.262  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 4

Log Text: The remains of this dolmen are in the middle of a field of barley, and are not easy to get to, but following some tractor wheel marks it was possible for me to get to it without doing any damage to the crop (and I was not the first).

This dolmen is larger, but less complete than the first two dolmens here. What would appear to be a 4 metre by 2.5 metre chamberis only covered at the western end by a capstone resting on three support stones. As at the other dolmens here, there is a large smoothed stone slab paving the floor.

Frébouchère Dolmen

Trip No.203  Entry No.263  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 4

Log Text: Easily found and signposted to the north of the village of Le Bernard, this wonderful dolmen has a little parking and picnic area. Ooooh, it’s a whopper, and absolutely fantastic !

It is a large Angevin dolmen with a main chamber 6.5 metres long by 3.5 metres wide, covered by a single massive capstone (now cracked into two parts) 2 metres high off the ground. There are three side stones along each side, and a single massive backstone at the western end. At the eastern end of the chamber are two partial closing stones and the two entrance porchway stones, with the chamber and its entrance facing towards the southeast at 130°.

Most of the stones are granite, but two of the stones, one on each side, are made from a different type of rock. Within the chamber, to the right near the entrance, is a granite stele, which almost reaches to the capstone, and has been very well smoothed and shaped. It is flat at the face near to the dolmen entrance, and side face near to the outside, but rounded around the back. The stone tapers upwards almost to a point, but has been cut short. There are no obvious engravings on it.

There is a lovely resonance inside the chamber, and two swallows or martins came flying through as I was inside. This is an all round excellent place, but it is a pity that it doesnt have a slightly larger enclosure around it like some, as it is nearly impossible to get a decent photograph of.

Menhir de la Boilière

Trip No.203  Entry No.264  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 4

Log Text: This 4 metre tall menhir fell in 1964, but has been re-erected only with the help of two cranes in the 1980s after they had failed to put it back up manually. It is a nicely shaped stone, and has at its foot another stone, which has several cupules and other markings cut into it. It is well signposted from the village of Avrillé, and is a pleasant evening stroll.

Camp de César Menhir

Trip No.203  Entry No.265  Date Added: 23rd Apr 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 5th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 4 Access 5

Log Text: This large menhir is the only survivor of what was until the last century three stones here, set in an arrangement like the surviving Alignment de la Pierre. At 8.7 metres tall and nicely shaped and dressed, the stone, known as Le Roi des Menhirs (King of the menhirs) is so big that it was not destroyed, and has now had a municipal park created around it.

It is right outside the back of the local Mairie, and is a nice central feature to the garden. However, even here it has suffered from vandalism, somebody having chalked a massive hopscotch type board onto the flat southeast face of the menhir. There are also a few holes which have been drilled into it.

Dolmen du Grand-Bouillac

Trip No.203  Entry No.266  Date Added: 24th Apr 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 6th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: This is a mid sized dolmen with entrance passageway. The main chamber is about 3 metres square with its single capstone slightly fallen. As with many of the dolmens around here, it has a smoothed limestone slab as a floor. There are a couple of entrance passage stone pairs, one of these still with its capstone.

There is a sign which states that until a century ago, there were many menhirs within a few hundred metres of this dolmen, which was still within a large mound at that time.

Pierre qui Vire (Russelet)

Trip No.203  Entry No.267  Date Added: 24th Apr 2020
Site Type: Standing Stone (Menhir) Country: France (Pays de la Loire:Vendée (85))
Visited: Yes on 6th Jun 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 3 Access 5

Log Text: The Pierre qui Vire is a nice lichen covered stone, about 4 metres tall, 3 metres wide, and made from Gris rock - the only large menhir in this region which is, all others being made from granite.

The Pierre qui Vire, or the turning stone, is said to turn around each night, either at midnight, or the first call of a cockerel. I thought I'd found a stone row here, but it turns out that the other stones lined up with it in the field are relatively modern placements by the local farmers as field clearance.