The Carnac stones have cheer account and fueled myths for G of years . Along the south seacoast of Brittany in northwestern France , an retiring field is stud with around 3,000 ancient megaliths . Their original purpose , however , stay a full mystery .
The Carnac rock were likely placed during the Neolithic geological era before the advent of agriculture in the domain . It ’s said the stones date stamp back to 4500 BCE , but it ’s thought they were moved here to the field in the Carnac neighborhood around 3300 BCE .
Either way , that ’s aged than Stonehenge in southerly England , which is count on to havebeen builtin legion stages from 3000 BCE to 2000 BCE .
Aerial shot of some of the Carnac stones. Image credit: Alla Khananashvili/Shutterstock.com
The Carnac gemstone are the largest collection of ancient megalith in the world . The M of rocks are spread across an arena of around 3 kilometer ( 1.8 miles ) .
Most are carved from granite taken from the local country , butsome appearto have been sourced from prey in eastern Le Manio , up to 40 kilometre ( 24 miles ) away . That ’s a pretty unbelievable effort considering this likely carry piazza over 6,000 years ago .
Although many of the Stone have been placed in a repetitive and neat manner , they are not uniform and can be split into a number of unlike class base on their shape and alignment , known as Le Ménec , Kermario , and Kerlescan .
Carnac stones run for as long as the eyes can see. Image credit: Alexandre G. ROSA/Shutterstock.com
Since the beginning of the 19th C , the Carnac stones have been described as a “ temple ” that in all probability had some spiritual meaning . There were even attempt to prove the Stone are placed to array with the wizard and planets , but these supposition have hang flat . Still today , there is no widely accepted theory ontheir purpose .
Carnac also baffled the Romans when they occupied Brittany from the 1st century BCE until the fifth century CE . Over the centuries , several mythssurrounded the stones . One narrative say the stones were pagan soldiers that had been turn to stone by Pope Cornelius , while another legend say they were a Roman legion that Merlin the wizard redact into stone .
" There are mint of interesting theories , some with exemplar that seem to jibe in sure circumstances , but there ’s always more to disprove them than to prove them , " Olivier Agogué , the executive of the site , toldBBC Travelin September 2022 .
" The Carnac Alignments are not straight , they meander and survey a ridge that part the coastal plain stitch from the interior , land - based world , belike playact as a sort of emblematical border between the two . Of naturally , it did not keep people from passing between them , but it marks a geographical detachment between demesne and ocean that is n’t random . But , its ceremonial or religious significance is open to reading , " he added .
