Menhir

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
"Standing stone" redirects here. For other uses, see Standing stone (disambiguation).

Large menhir located between Millstreet and Ballinagree, County Cork, Ireland
Cwm Rhaeadr Fawr maen hir (menhir) near Aber Falls, Gwynedd, Wales
Dry Tree menhir – a standing stone at Goonhilly Downs Cornwall

A menhir (

middle Bronze Age. They can be found individually as monoliths
, or as part of a group of similar stones. Menhirs' size can vary considerably, but they often taper toward the top.

Menhirs are found across Europe, Africa, and Asia, with a concentration in Western Europe, notably in Ireland, Great Britain, and Brittany. Their purpose remains speculative, with theories ranging from druidic rituals to territorial markers or elements of an ideological system. Some menhirs feature engravings, including anthropomorphic figures and symbols, and are often associated with ancient religious ceremonies and burial chambers.

Etymology

The word menhir was adopted from French by 19th-century archaeologists. The introduction of the word into general archaeological usage has been attributed to the 18th-century French military officer Théophile Corret de la Tour d'Auvergne.[3] It is a combination of two words of the Breton language: maen and hir. In modern Welsh, they are described as maen hir, or "long stone". In modern Breton, the word peulvan is used, with peul meaning "stake" or "post" and van which is a soft mutation of the word maen which means "stone". In Germany and Scandinavia the word Bauta is used (e.g., de:Bautastein and no:bautastein) and this occasionally makes its way into English with the term "bauta stone".

The Géant du Manio, a menhir in Carnac, Brittany

History

Almost nothing is known of the social organization or religious beliefs of the people who erected the menhirs. Their language is also unknown. It is known, however, that they buried their dead and had the skills to grow crops, farm and make pottery, stone tools and jewelry. Identifying the purpose or use of menhirs remains speculative. Until recently, standing stones were associated with the

Beaker people, who inhabited Europe during the European late Neolithic and early Bronze Age—later third millennium BC, c. 2800–1800 BC. However, recent research into the age of megaliths in Brittany strongly suggests a far older origin, perhaps back to six to seven thousand years ago.[4]

During the European Middle Ages, standing stones were believed to have been built by the

biblical flood. Many of the megaliths were destroyed or defaced by early Christians; it is estimated that some 50,000 megaliths once stood in Northern Europe, where almost 10,000 now remain.[5]
Menhirs have also been found in many other parts of the world.

Many menhirs are engraved with

passage graves, where they had new megalithic art carved with little regard for the previous pictures. It is not known if this re-use was deliberate or if the passage grave builders just saw menhirs as a convenient source of stone.[6]

Where menhirs appear in groups, often in a circular, oval,

druids for human sacrifice, used as territorial markers, or elements of a complex ideological system, used as mnemonic systems for oral cultures,[8] or functioning as early calendars.[9] Until the nineteenth century, antiquarians did not have substantial knowledge of prehistory, and their only reference points were provided by classical literature. The developments of radiocarbon dating and dendrochronology
have significantly advanced scientific knowledge in this area.

Geographical distribution

Main article: List of menhirs

Menhirs are widely distributed across Europe, Africa and Asia, but are most numerous in Western Europe; particularly in Ireland, Great Britain, and

snug bar at the hotel.[12]

It is believed that practitioners of megalithic religions travelled via the sea, as the mass majority of menhirs are located on coasts, islands, and peninsulas.[13]

In popular culture

The French comic book series Asterix features the character Obelix, who is known for carrying menhirs, as a sculptor and deliveryman.[14]

See also

  • Asherah pole – Canaanite sacred tree or pole honouring goddess
  • Baetylus – Type of sacred standing stone
  • Carlin stone – Name of many stones in Scotland
  • Carnac stones – Set of megalithic sites in Brittany, France
  • Ceremonial pole – Stake or post used in ritual practice
  • Cove (standing stones) – Tight rectangular group of stones
  • Cromlech – Ring of standing stones
  • Deer stone
     – Megaliths found largely in Siberia and Mongolia
  • Dolmen – Type of single-chamber megalithic tomb
  • Fulacht fiadh – Burned mound from the Bronze Age in Ireland
  • Gowk stane – Standing stones and glacial erratics in Scotland
  • Henge – Type of Neolithic earthwork
  • High place – 1st-millennium BCE Canaanite shrine
  • Inuksuk – Inuit built stone landmark or cairn
  • Kigilyakh – Natural tall rock pillars in Yakutia
  • Ley line – Straight alignments between historic structures and landmarks
  • List of largest monoliths
  • Megalith – Large stone used to build a structure or monument
  • Moai – Monolithic human figures on Easter Island
  • Napakivi – Standing stones in Finland
  • Nature worship – Worship of the nature spirits
  • Obelisk – Tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top
  • Obelix – Cartoon character in the French comic book series Asterix
  • Orthostates – Man-made large stone slabs set in upright position
  • Matzevah – Sacred pillar (in the Bible) or Jewish headstone. Also matzeva/mazzeva/maseba/masseba/massebah.
  • Statue menhir – Standing stone carved into a human shape
  • Stone circle – Ring of standing stones
  • Stone row – Linear row of standing stones. Also stone alignment.
  • Stone ship – Stones set in the shape of a boat in north European burials. Also ship setting.
  • Stone slab – Flat, thin, and big stone
  • Trees in mythology – Significance of trees in religion and folklore

Notes

  1. doi:10.1093/OED/8737336948. Retrieved 25 September 2023. (Subscription or participating institution membership
    required.)
  2. ^ Anon. "Menhir". The Free Dictionary. Farlex, Inc. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
  3. ^ Landru, Philippe (23 August 2008). "La Tour d'Auvergne (Théophile Malo Corret de la Tour d'Auvergne : 1743–1800)". Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  4. ^ Aviva, Elyn; White, Gary (October 1998). "Mysterious Megaliths: The Standing Stones of Carnac, Brittany, France". World and I. Vol. 13.
  5. ISBN 1-888729-10-4
    . Retrieved 21 February 2010.
  6. ^ Le Roux, C. T. (1992). "The Art of Gavrinis Presented in its Armorican Context and in Comparison with Ireland". Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 122: 79–108.
  7. ISBN 0-7862-8517-6
    .
  8. OCLC 910935575
    .
  9. ^ Patton, Mark. (1993). Statements in Stone: Monuments and Society in Neolithic Brittany. New York: Routledge. p. 4.
  10. ISBN 1-59905-010-2
    . Retrieved 25 August 2011.
  11. ^ Oliphant, Margaret (1992). The Atlas Of The Ancient World. p. 81.
  12. ^ "Oxenham Arms—Standing Stone (Menhir)". The Megalithic Portal. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  13. ISBN 978-0-14-191819-8
    . Retrieved 26 December 2020.
  14. ^ "Reach for the sky with Astérix". 17 October 2023.

Further reading

  • Mohen, Jean-Pierre (2000) [1998]. Standing Stones: Stonehenge, Carnac and the World of Megaliths.
    ISBN 0-500-30090-9
    .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Menhirs.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Menhir&oldid=1210834797"
This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article: Menhir. Articles is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license; additional terms may apply.Privacy Policy