Orientations of 935 Dolmens of Southern France

Chevalier Yves , L'architecture des dolmens entre Languedoc et centre-ouest de France, published by Dr. Rudolf Habelt GmbH, Am Buchenhang 1, D-53115 Bonn, Germany.

Chevalier Yves , ‘À propos des monuments dolmeniques du Pays Basque: Étude préliminaire’, Archives des Pyrénées Occidentales, vii (1987), 142–8.

Chevalier Yves , ‘L'architecture des dolmens du Sud de la France’, La Néolithique de la France, ed. by Demoule J. P. Guilaine J. (Paris, 1986), 359–77.

Temple Paul , ‘Sépultures mégalithiques dites ‘Oustal de Los Fadarellos’ (Cne Clapier, Aveyron)’, Bulletin de la Société d'Études des Sciences Naturelles de Nîmes, xlvii (1930–35), 43–48.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1).

See especially his 250-page study: Arnal Jean , ‘Les dolmens du département de l'Hérault’, Préhistoire, xv (1963).

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 66–69. [See also the works cited below in refs 18, 20, 29, 34 and 35.].

Clottes Jean , ‘Inventaire des mégalithes de la France: Lot’, supplement 1/5 (1977) to Gallia préhistoire.

Clottes Jean Maurand Cl. , “Inventaire des mégalithes de la France: Aveyron. L'Ouest aveyronnais: Causses de Limogne et de Villeneuve”, supplement 1/7 (1983) to Gallia préhistoire.

Burnez C. , ‘Typologie sommaire des dolmens de la Charente’, Instituí Historique et Archéologique de Cognac, 1957, 141–50.

I am indebted to Dr Jacques Blot, who most kindly led me to the Basque tombs discussed here. [Blot's recent summary account of the monuments of the area is ‘Inventaire des dolmens et monolithes en Pays Basque de France’, Société d'Anthropologie du Sud-Ouest: Bulletin trimestrial, xxviii (1993), 137–44.].

Cf. ref.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), Plates 26/1 and 26/2.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), Fig. 3.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 71 ‘Nous terminerons par les dolmens de plan languedocien édifiés aux Baleares. Ces monuments indiquent des rapports évidents entre la tradition languedocienne et la mégalithisme insulaire.’.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 69.

MacAu I. , ‘Nous monuments megalítics de l'Alt Empordà’, Butlletí de l'Institut d'Història Natural, xxxiv, nos. 6–9 (1934); Cura M. Ferran A. , ‘Los sepulcros megalíticos de la Sierra de Roda’, Corpus de sepulcros megalíticos, vi (Barcelona, 1970); Tarrús J. , ‘El megalitisme de l'Alt Empordà (Girona): Els constructors de dòlmens entre el Neolític Mitjà i el Calcolític a l'Albera, Serra de Roda i Cap de Creus’, Cola zero (Vic), no. 3 (1987), 36–54.

Hoskin Michael Palomo i Pérez Toni , ‘Studies in Iberian archaeoastronomy: (4) The orientations of megalithic tombs of eastern Catalunya’, Journal for the history of astronomy, xxix (1998), 63–79. See also the Addendum in this issue of Archaeoastronomy..

Arnal , op. cit. (ref. 6); Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), passim.

Hoskin Michael Núñez José Morales Juan , ‘The orientations of the burial monuments of Menorca’, Archaeoastronomy, no. 16 (1991), 15–42; Michael Hoskin, ‘Baleares: Arqueoastronomía de la cultura talayótica’, Arqueoastronomía hispana, ed. by Belmonte J. A. A. (Madrid, 1994), 159–81.

Tarrús Josep , ‘Consideracions sobre el Neolític Final-Calcolític a Catalunya (2500–1800 a.C.)’, Cypsela, v (1985), 45–57.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 32: ‘Nous dirons simplement que les dolmens [languedociens] semblent avoir été dirigés le plus souvent le dos aux vents dominants qui viennent du Nord et du Nord-Est dans la région languedocienne.’.

Ibid. 33.

Clones , op. cit. (ref. 8), 310–11.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 239.

Waldren's ‘arc of immediate influence is the principal geographic area within which we can trace most Balearic artefact parallels and cultural roots; an area extending from the region of Almería in the south, along the Valencia coast and northward into Catalonia and the Pyrenees, reaching into the Languedoc and Provence of France’, Waldren William H. , ‘Early prehistoric settlement in the Balearic Islands’ (DAMARC Series no. 13, Deya, 1982), 15.

See ref. 20.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 74.

Hoskin Michael and Colleagues, ‘Studies in Iberian archaeoastronomy: (5) Orientations of megalithic tombs of northern and western Iberia’, Archaeoastronomy, no. 23 (1998), S39–87.

“One end of every Church doth point to such a Place, where the Sun did rise at the time the Foundation thereof was laid, which is the Reason why all Churches do not directly point to the East; for if the Foundation was laid in June, it pointed to the North-east, where the Sun rises at that time of the Year; if it was laid in the Spring or Autumn, it was directed full East; if in Winter, South-east; and by the standing of these Churches, it is known at what time of the Year the Foundations of them were laid”. Henry Chauncy, The historical antiquities of Hertfordshire (London, 1700), i, 88.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 1), 116.

Chevalier , op. cit. (ref. 2), 143: ‘… selon la tradition atlantique c'est-à-dire en direction du soleil levant (de l'E-NE au S-E).’.

Hoskin and colleagues, op. cit. (ref. 29), Section C.

Michael Hoskin Elizabeth Allan Gralewski Renate , ‘Studies in Iberian archaeoastronomy: (1) Orientations of the megalithic sepulchres of Almería, Granada and Málaga’, Archaeoastronomy, no. 19 (1994), S55–82; idem, ‘(2) Orientations of the tholos tombs of Almería’, ibid., no. 20 (1995), S29–40; idem, ‘(3) Customs and motives in Andalucía’, ibid., no. 20(1995), S41–48.

Mauro Zedda Michael Hoskin Renate Gralewski Manca Giacobbe , “Orientations of 230 Sardinian tombe di giganti”, Archaeoastronomy, no. 21 (1996), S33–54; Hoskin Michael Zedda Mauro , ‘Orientations of Sardinian dolmens’, Archaeoastronomy, no. 22 (1997), S1–16; Michael Hoskin Elizabeth Allan Gralewski Renate , ‘Orientations of Corsican dolmens’, Journal for the history of astronomy, xxv (1994), 313–17; idem, ‘Further orientations of Corsican dolmens’, ibid., xxvi (1995), 247–52.