Everything about Dolmen totally explained
A
dolmen (also known as
cromlech,
anta,
Hünengrab,
Hunebed,
quoit, and
portal dolmen) is a type of single-chamber
megalithic tomb, usually consisting of three or more
upright stones supporting a large flat horizontal capstone (table).
Most date from the early
Neolithic period (4000 to 3000 BC). Dolmens were usually covered with earth or smaller stones to form a
barrow, though in many cases that covering has weathered away, leaving only the stone "skeleton" of the burial mound intact.
Etymology
"Dolmen" originates from the expression
taol maen, which means "stone table" in
Breton, and was first used archaeologically by
Théophile Corret de la Tour d'Auvergne. The
etymology of the
German Hünenbett or
Hünengrab and
Dutch Hunebed (lit.
Huns' bed) all evoke the image of
giants building the structures. Of other
Celtic languages, "
cromlech" derives from
Welsh and "quoit" is commonly used in
Cornwall.
Anta is the term used in
Portugal, and
dös in Sweden.
Dolmen sites
Europe
Megalithic tombs are found from the
Baltic Sea and
North Sea coasts south to Spain and Portugal.
Hunebedden are
chamber tombs similar to dolmens and date to the middle
Neolithic (
Funnelbeaker culture, 4th millennium BC). They consist of a
kerb surrounding an
oval mound which covered a
rectangular chamber of stones with the entrance on one of the long sides. Some have a more complex layout and include an entrance passage giving them a T-shape. It has been suggested that this means they're related to the
passage graves found in
Denmark and elsewhere.
Dolmen sites fringe the
Irish Sea and are found in south-east
Ireland,
Wales, and Cornwall. In
Ireland, however, dolmens are more to be found on the west coast, particularly in the
Burren and
Connemara, where some of the more well-known examples, such as
Poulnabrone dolmen, are to be found. Examples have also been found in northern Ireland where they may have co-existed with the
court cairn tombs. It is thought that the dolmens themselves evolved from a simpler
cist burial method.
A great many examples can also be found on the Channel Island of Jersey, such as La Pouquelaye de Faldouet, La Hougue des Géonnais and La Sergeanté. The most famous of these sites is
La Hougue Bie a 6,000 year old neolithic site that sits inside a large mound; later a chapel was built on the top of the mound.
Amongst the vast Neolithic collections of the
Carnac stones in
Brittany,
France, several dozen dolmens are found. And all around the country, several dolmens still stand, such as the ones of Passebonneau and des Gorces near
Saint-Benoît-du-Sault.
In
Spain dolmens can be found in
Galicia (such as
Axeitos, pictured below),
Catalonia (like
Romanyà de la Selva or
Creu d'en Cobertella) and
Andalusia (like the
Cueva de Menga).
Dolmens can be found all over
Portugal, from simple ones
(External Link
) to the more complex examples of megalithic architecture, such as the
Almendres Cromlech or the
Anta Grande do Zambujeiro.
In
Mecklenburg and
Pomerania (
Germany) and
Drenthe (
The Netherlands), large numbers of these graves were disturbed when harbours, towns, and cities were built. The boulders were used in
construction and
road building. There are still many thousands left today in Europe; for example, more than a thousand stand on the island of
Rügen alone.
In
Italy dolmens can be found in the south (
Puglia) and in
Sardinia.
In
Bulgaria there are many dolmens, and more are being recorded by archaeologists.
The largest dolmen in Europe is the
Brownshill Dolmen in
County Carlow, Ireland. Its capstone weighs about 150 tonnes.
Asia
Similar tombs can be found all over the world.
Korea has many of the Asian dolmens, dating from the 1st millennium BC. The dolmen in
Ganghwa is a northern-type, table-shaped dolmen where ancestral rites were held. It is the biggest stone of this kind in
South Korea, measuring 2.6 by 7.1 by 5.5
metres. The number of dolmens in North and South Korea, approximately 30,000, is about 40% of the total number of dolmens in the world.
There are also dolmens in Kerala, India, about 7 km from
Marayoor, Kerala, near the small village of Pious Nagar, also known as Alinchuvad. These dolmens are set in clusters of two to five dolmens obviously for the burial of a family. There are hundreds of such dolmen clusters in the area. Apart from overground dolmens, underground burial chambers built with dressed stone slabs have also been discovered in Marayoor. All these dolmens are made from heavy granite slabs, mined using primitive technology. This was a burial ground for several centuries for a noble tribal dynasty known as Adi Cheras.
Middle East
Dolmens are also found in
Israel,
Syria and
Jordan.
Eurasia
Over 3000 dolmens and other structures can be found in the North-Western Caucasus region of Russia, where more and more dolmens are discovered in the mountains each year.
Other photos
Image:Korea-Ganghwado-Dolmen-02.jpg|Ganghwa dolmen, South Korea
Image:Dolmen Russia Kavkaz Jane 1.jpg|Dolmen near the Jane River, Russia
Image:Dolmen Russia Kavkaz Jane 2.jpg|Dolmen near the Jane River, Russia
Image:Dolmen.jpg|Dolmen near the Pshada River, Russia
Image:Knocknakilla Dolmen.jpg|Knocknakilla dolmen, Ireland
Image:Glantane East Wedge Tomb.jpg|Wedge tomb, Glantane east, Ireland
Image:Dolmen axeitos.JPG|Dolmen de Axeitos, Galicia, Spain
Image:Chûn Quoit (small).jpg|Chûn quoit, Penwith, Cornwall, UK
Image:Hunnoordlaaren2.jpg|Hunebed, Noordlaren, (G1) The Netherlands
Image:pollnabrone.jpg|Poulnabrone dolmen, Ireland
Image:Covadendaina.jpg|Cova d'Endaina, Romanya de la Selva, Catalunya, Spain
Image:Ireland LegannannyDolman.jpg|Legananny, Ireland
Image:La_Hougue_Bie_entrance_and_chapel,_Jersey.jpg|La Hougue Bie, Jersey
Further Information
Get more info on 'Dolmen'.
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