Amegalith is a largestone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. More than 35,000 megalithic structures have been identified across Europe, ranging geographically fromSweden in the north to theMediterranean Sea in the south.[1]
While "megalith" is often used to describe a single piece of stone, it also can be used to denote one or more rocks hewn in definite shapes for special purposes.[6] It has been used to describe structures built by people from many parts of the world living in many different periods.[citation needed] The most widely known megaliths are nottombs.[7]
Multiple megaliths placed in relation to each other with intention. Often placed inrows orspirals. Some alignments, such as theCarnac Stones inBrittany, France, consist of thousands of stones.
In most languagesstone circles are called "cromlechs" (a word in theWelsh language); the word "cromlech" is sometimes used with that meaning in English.
Dolmen
Adolmen is a stone table, consisting of a wide stone supported by several other stones[13]
Cist
Acist is a small stone-built coffin-like box orossuary used to hold thebodies of the dead. Burials are megalithic forms very similar to dolmens in structure. These types of burials were completely underground.[citation needed]
c. 2500 BC: Tombs atAlgarve,Portugal.[20] Additionally, a problematic dating (byoptically stimulated luminescence) of Quinta da Queimada Menhir in western Algarve indicates "a very early period of megalithic activity in the Algarve, older than in the rest of Europe and [similar to] the famous Anatolian site of Göbekli Tepe"[21]
c. 2400 BC: The Bell-beaker culture was dominant in Britain, and hundreds of smallerstone circles were built in the British Isles at this time.
The most common type of megalithic construction in Europe is theportal tomb—a chamber consisting of upright stones (orthostats) with one or more large flat capstones forming a roof. Many portal tombs have been found to contain human remains, but it is debated if their primary function was use as burial sites. The megalithic structures in the northwest of France are believed to be the oldest in Europe based on radiocarbon dating.[24] Though generally known as "dolmens", the term most accepted by archaeologists is "portal tomb". Local names for portal tombs exist in multiple locations, such asanta inGalicia and Portugal,stazzone inSardinia,hunebed in the Netherlands,Hünengrab in Germany,dysse in Denmark, andcromlech inWales. It is assumed that most portal tombs were originally covered by earthen mounds.
The second-most-common tomb type is thepassage grave. It normally consists of a square, circular, or cruciform chamber with a slabbed orcorbelled roof, accessed by a long, straight passageway, with the whole structure covered by a circular mound of earth. Sometimes it is also surrounded by an external stone kerb. Prominent examples include the sites ofBrú na Bóinne andCarrowmore in Ireland,Maes Howe inOrkney, andGavrinis in France.
The third tomb type is a diverse group known asgallery graves. These are axially arranged chambers placed under elongated mounds. The Irishcourt tombs, Britishlong barrows, and GermanSteinkisten belong to this group.
Standing stones, ormenhirs as they are known in France, are very common throughout Europe, where some 50,000 examples have been noted.[citation needed] Some of these are thought to have an astronomical function as a marker or foresight.[citation needed] In some areas, long and complex "alignments" of such stones exist, the largest known example being located atCarnac inBrittany, France.[citation needed]
In parts of Britain and Ireland a relatively common type of megalithic construction is thestone circle, of which examples includeStonehenge,Avebury,Ring of Brodgar andBeltany. These, too, display evidence of astronomical alignments, both solar and lunar. Stonehenge, for example, is famous for itssolstice alignment. Examples of stone circles are also found in the rest of Europe. The circle atLough Gur, near Limerick in Ireland has been dated to the Beaker period, approximately contemporaneous with Stonehenge. The stone circles are assumed to be of later date than the tombs, straddling theNeolithic and theBronze Ages.
Megalithic tombs are aboveground burial chambers, built of largestone slabs (megaliths) laid on edge and covered with earth or other, smaller stones. They are a type ofchamber tomb, and the term is used to describe the structures built acrossAtlantic Europe, the Mediterranean, and neighbouring regions, mostly during theNeolithic period, by Neolithic farming communities. They differ from the contemporarylong barrows through their structural use of stone.
Construction of a megalith grave
There is a huge variety of megalithic tombs. The free-standing single chamberdolmens andportal dolmens found inBrittany, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Sweden,Wales, and elsewhere consist of a large flat stone supported by three, four, or more standing stones. They were covered by a stonecairn or earthbarrow.
In Italy, dolmens can be found especially inSardinia. There are more than 100 dolmen dating to the Neolithic (3500–2700 BC) and the most famous is calledDolmen di Sa Coveccada (nearMores). During theBronze Age, theNuragic civilization built c. 800Giants' grave, a type of megalithicgallery grave that can be found throughoutSardinia with different structures. The earliest megalithic tombs in Sardinia are the circular graves of the so-calledArzachena culture, also found inCorsica,southern France and eastern Spain.
Dolmens are also in Apulia and in Sicily. In this latter region, they are small structures located in Mura Pregne (Palermo), Sciacca (Agrigento), Monte Bubbonia (Caltanissetta), Butera (Caltanissetta), Cava Lazzaro (Siracusa), Cava dei Servi (Ragusa), Avola (Siracusa), andArgimusco inMontalbano Elicona (Messina). Dating to the Early Bronze Age (2200–1800 BC), the prehistoric Sicilian buildings were covered by a circular mound of earth. In the dolmen of Cava dei Servi, archaeologists found numerous human bone fragments and some splinters of Castelluccian ceramics (Early Bronze Age) which confirmed the burial purpose of the artefact.[25]
Examples with outer areas, not used for burial, are also known. TheCourt Cairns of southwestScotland and northern Ireland, theSevern-Cotswold tombs of southwest England and thetransepted gallery graves of theLoire region in France share many internal features, although the links between them are not yet fully understood. That they often have antechambers or forecourts is thought to imply a desire on the part of the builders to emphasize a specialritual or physical separation of the dead from the living.
Megalithic tombs appear to have been used by communities for the long-term deposition of the remains of their dead, and some seem to have undergone alteration and enlargement. The organization and effort required to erect these large stones suggest that the societies concerned placed great emphasis on the proper treatment of their dead. Theritual significance of the tombs is supported by the presence ofpre-historic art carved into the stones at some sites. Hearths and deposits of pottery and animal bone found by archaeologists around some tombs also implies that some form of burial feast or sacrificial rites took place there.
Further examples of megalithic tombs include the stalled cairn atMidhowe in Orkney and the passage grave atBryn Celli Ddu onAnglesey. There are also extensive grave sites with up to 60 megaliths atLouisenlund andGryet on the Danish island ofBornholm.[26]
Despite its name, theStone Tomb inUkraine was not a tomb but rather a sanctuary.
In association with the megalithic constructions across Europe, there are often largeearthworks of various designs—ditches and banks (like theDorset Cursus), broad terraces, circular enclosures known ashenges, and frequently artificial mounds such asSilbury Hill in England andMonte d'Accoddi inSardinia (the prehistoric step pyramid).
In Europe megaliths are, in general, constructions erected during theNeolithic or late Stone Age andChalcolithic or Copper Age (4500–1500 BC). The megalithic structures ofMalta are believed to be the oldest in Europe. Perhaps the most famous megalithic structure isStonehenge in England.In Sardinia, in addition to dolmens, menhirs and circular graves there are also more than 8000 megalithic structures made by a Nuragic civilisation, calledNuraghe: buildings similar to towers (sometimes with really complex structures) made using only rocks. They are often neargiant's grave or the other megalithic monuments.
Tumulus of Kercado, nearCarnac. Smaller but older structure in the area. (Part of theCairn is visible)
The FrenchComte de Caylus was the first to describe theCarnac stones.Pierre Jean-Baptiste Legrand d'Aussy introduced the termsmenhir anddolmen, both taken from theBreton language, into antiquarian terminology. He mistakenly interpreted megaliths as Gallic tombs. In Britain, theantiquariansAubrey andStukeley conducted early research into megaliths. In 1805,Jacques Cambry published a book calledMonuments celtiques, ou recherches sur le culte des Pierres, précédées d'une notice sur les Celtes et sur les Druides, et suivies d'Etymologie celtiques, where he proposed aCeltic stone cult. This unproven connection betweendruids and megaliths has haunted the public imagination ever since.[citation needed] In Belgium, there are theWéris megaliths at Wéris, a little town situated in theArdennes. In the Netherlands, megalithic structures can be found in the northeast of the country, mostly in the province ofDrenthe.Knowth is apassage grave of theBrú na Bóinne neolithic complex in Ireland, dating from c. 3500–3000 BC. It contains more than a third of the total number of examples ofmegalithic art in all Europe, with over 200 decorated stones found during excavations.
Nabta Playa at the southwest corner of the western Egyptian desert was once a large lake in theNubian Desert, located 500 miles south of modern-dayCairo.[27] By the 5th millennium BC, the peoples inNabta Playa had fashioned an astronomical device that accurately marks the summersolstice.[28] Findings indicate that the region was occupied only seasonally, likely only in the summer when the local lake filled with water for grazingcattle.[29] There are other megalithic stone circles in the southwestern desert.
In the northwestern region of theCentral African Republic, there aremegaliths that were created for various purposes (e.g., burial, ritual performances).[30]Between late 3rd millennium BCE and mid-2nd millennium CE, megaliths (e.g., monuments, cairn burials) were constructed in the regions (e.g., EasternAdamawa,Oubanguian Ridge,Chad/Congo watershed) in Central African Republic and Cameroon, throughout various periods (e.g., Balimbé: 2000 BCE – 1000 BCE; Early Gbabiri: 950 BCE – 200 BCE; Late Gbabiri: 200 BCE – 500 CE; Bouboun: 500 CE – 1600 CE), for various purposes (e.g., ritual practices, territorial marking).[30]
In theEthiopian Highlands ofHarar, the earliest construction of megaliths occurred.[30] From this region and its megalith-building tradition (e.g., dolmens,tumuli with burial chambers organized in cemeteries), the subsequent traditions in other areas ofEthiopia likely developed.[30] In the late 1st millennium BCE, the urban civilization ofAxum developed a megalithicstelae-building tradition, which commemorated Axumite royalty and elites, that persisted until theChristian period ofAxum.[30] In the Sidamo Province, the megalithic monoliths of the stelae-building cultural tradition were utilized as tombstones in cemeteries (e.g., Arussi, Konso, Sedene, Tiya, Tuto Felo), and have engraved anthropomorphic features (e.g., swords, masks), phallic form, and some of that served as markers of territory.[30] Sidamo Province has the most megaliths in Ethiopia.[30]In 2nd millennium BCE, Namoratunga (Monolith Circles) megaliths were constructed as burials the easternTurkana region of northwesternKenya.[30]
Namoratunga, a group of megaliths dated 300 BC, was used byCushitic-speaking people as an alignment with star systems tuned to a lunar calendar of 354 days. This site was excavated by B. N. Lynch and L. H. Robins ofMichigan State University.[31]
Additionally,Tiya in centralEthiopia has a number of old megaliths. Some of these ancient structures feature engravings, and the area is a World Heritage Site. Megaliths are also found within the Valley of Marvels in the East Hararghe area.
In the mid-2nd millennium CE, the megalithic funerary monuments ofMadagascar were constructed amid theemergent period of theMerina Kingdom.[30] Some of the megaliths remain utilized byMalagasy-speakers for funerary practices (e.g., ceremony of turning the dead) in present-day.[30]
Megalithic burials are found in Northeast and Southeast Asia. They are found mainly in theKorean Peninsula. They are also found in theLiaoning,Shandong, andZhejiang in China, the East Coast ofTaiwan,Kyūshū andShikoku in Japan,Đồng Nai Province inVietnam andSouth Asia. Some living megalithic traditions are found on the island ofSumba andNias inIndonesia. The greatest concentration of megalithic burials is in Korea. Archaeologists estimate that there are 15,000 to 100,000 southern megaliths in the Korean Peninsula.[32][33] Typical estimates hover around the 30,000 mark for the entire peninsula, which in itself constitutes some 40% of all dolmens worldwide (seeDolmen).
Northeast Asian megalithic traditions originated fromGojoseon, which was in modern-dayManchuria andNorth Korea. This was prominent within theLiao River basin in particular in the early phases.[34][35] The practice of erecting megalithic burials spread quickly from the Liao River Basin and into the Korean Peninsula, where the structure of megaliths is geographically and chronologically distinct. The earliest megalithic burials are called "northern" or "table-style" because they feature an above-ground burial chamber formed by heavy stone slabs that form a rectangular cist.[36] An oversized capstone is placed over the stone slab burial chamber, giving the appearance of a table-top. These megalithic burials date to the early part of theMumun pottery period (c. 1500–850 BC) and are distributed, with a few exceptions, north of theHan River. Few northern-style megaliths in North Korea and Manchuria containgrave goods such asLiaoning bronze daggers, prompting some archaeologists to interpret the burials as the graves of chiefs or preeminent individuals.[37] However, whether a result of grave-robbery or intentional mortuary behaviour, most northern megaliths contain no grave goods.
Representations of a dagger (right) and two human figures, one of which is kneeling (left), carved into the capstone of Megalithic Burial No. 5, Orim-dong,Yeosu, Korea
Southern-style megalithic burials are distributed in the southernKorean Peninsula. It is thought that most of them date to the latter part of the EarlyMumun or to the Middle Mumun Period.[36][37] Southern-style megaliths are typically smaller in scale than northern megaliths. The interment area of southern megaliths has an underground burial chamber made of earth or lined with thin stone slabs. A massive capstone is placed over the interment area and is supported by smaller propping stones. Most of the megalithic burials on theKorean Peninsula are of the southern type.
As with northern megaliths, southern examples contain few, if any, artifacts. However, a small number of megalithic burials contain fine red-burnished pottery, bronze daggers, polished groundstone daggers, and greenstone ornaments. Southern megalithic burials are often found in groups, spread out in lines that are parallel with the direction of streams. Megalithic cemeteries contain burials that are linked together by low stone platforms made from large river cobbles. Broken red-burnished pottery and charred wood found on these platforms has led archaeologists to hypothesize that these platform were sometimes used for ceremonies and rituals.[38] The capstones of many southern megaliths have 'cup-marks' carvings. A small number of capstones have human and dagger representations.
These megaliths are distinguished from other types by the presence of a burial shaft, sometimes up to 4 m in depth, which is lined with large cobbles.[39] A large capstone is placed over the burial shaft without propping stones. Capstone-style megaliths are the most monumental type in theKorean Peninsula, and they are primarily distributed near or on the south coast of Korea. It seems that most of these burials date to the latter part of the Middle Mumun (c. 700–550 BC), and they may have been built into the early part of the Late Mumun. An example is found near modernChangwon at Deokcheon-ni, where a small cemetery contained a capstone burial (No. 1) with a massive, rectangularly shaped, stone and earthen platform. Archaeologists were not able to recover the entire feature, but the low platform was at least 56×18 m in size.
Several megalith sites and structures are also found across Indonesia. Menhirs, dolmens, stone tables, and ancestral stone statues were discovered in various sites inJava,Sumatra,Sulawesi,Lesser Sunda Islands, andNew Guinea.[41]
TheCipari megalith site also in West Java displays monoliths, stone terraces, and sarcophagi.[42][43]
Megaliths in South Asia are dated before 3000 BC, with recent findings dated back to 5000 BC in southern India.[45] Megaliths are found in almost all parts of South Asia. There is also a broad time evolution with the megaliths in central India and the upper Indus valley where the oldest megaliths are found, while those in the east also old shows evidence of continued traditions of living megalithic practices until recently.[46][47] A large fraction of these are assumed to be associated with burial or post burial rituals, including memorials for those whose remains may or may not be available. The case-example is that of Brahmagiri, which was excavated by Wheeler (1975) and helped establish the culture sequence in south Indian prehistory. However, there is another distinct class of megaliths that do not seem to be associated with burials.[46]
In South Asia, megaliths of all kinds are noted; these vary frommenhirs, rock-cut burial, chamber tomb,dolmens, stone alignment, stone circles and anthropomorphic statue figures.[48] These are broadly classified into two (potentially overlapping) classes (after Moorti, 1994, 2008):Sepulchral (containing remains of the dead), or memorial stones where mortal remains along with funerary objects are placed; andNon-sepulchral including large patterned placement of stones over a wide area. The 'non-sepulchral' type is associated with astronomy and cosmology in South Asia and in other parts of the world (Menon and Vahia, 2010).[49]
In the context of prehistoric anthropomorphic figures in India, (Rao 1988/1999, Upinder Singh 2008) note that it is unclear what these giant anthropomorph statues symbolize. They usually occur in association with megalithic monuments and are located in megalithic burial grounds, and may have been connected with ancestor worship.[50][51]
At the most famous of these sites,Göbekli Tepe, parts of the oldest level (III) have beenC14-dated as far back as to the mid-10th millennium BC (cal).[52] On this level, 20 great stone circles (up to 20 meters in diameter) withstanding stones up to 7 meters high have been identified.[53] At least 5 of these circles have so far (as of 2019) been excavated.[54] Many of the standing stones are richly ornamented with carved reliefs of "[b]ears, boars, snakes, foxes, wildcats, aurochs, gazelle, quadruped reptiles, birds, spiders, insects, quadrupeds, scorpions" and other animals; in addition, some of the stones are carved in low profile with stylized human features (arms, hands, loincloths, butno heads).[55][56]
On the younger level (II) rectangular structures with smaller megaliths have been excavated. In the surrounding area, several village sites incorporating elements similar to those of Göbekli Tepe have been identified.[57] Four of these have Göbekli Tepe's characteristic T-shaped standing stones, though only one of them,Nevalı Çori, has so far been excavated.[58] At Göbekli Tepe itself, no traces of habitation have so far been found, nor any trace of agriculture or cultivated plants, though bones of wild animals and traces of wild edible plants, along with many grinding stones, have been unearthed.[59] It is thus assumed that these structures (which have been characterized as the first known ceremonial architecture)[60] were erected byhunter-gatherers.
Göbekli Tepe's oldest structures are about 7,000 years older than theStonehenge megaliths, although it is doubtful that any of the European megalithic traditions (see below) are derived from them.[61]
A semicircular arrangement of megaliths was found in Israel atAtlit Yam, a site that is now under the sea. It is a very early example, dating from the7th millennium BC.[63]
The most concentrated occurrence of dolmens in particular is in a large area on both sides of theJordan Rift Valley, with greater predominance on the eastern side. They occur first and foremost on theGolan Heights, theHauran, and in Jordan, which probably has the largest concentration of dolmen in West Asia. In Saudi Arabia, only very few dolmen have been identified so far in theHejaz. They seem, however, to re-emerge in Yemen in small numbers, and thus could indicate a continuous tradition related to those ofSomalia andEthiopia.
The standing stone has a very ancient tradition in West Asia, dating back fromMesopotamian times. Although not always 'megalithic' in the true sense, they occur throughout the area and can reach 5 metres or more in some cases (such as atAder in Jordan). This phenomenon can also be traced through many passages from theOld Testament, such as those related toJacob, the grandson ofAbraham, who poured oil over a stone that he erected after his famous dream in which angels climbed to heaven (Genesis 28:10–22). Jacob is also described as putting up stones at other occasions, whereasMoses erected twelve pillars symbolizing the tribes of Israel. The tradition of venerating standing stones continued inNabatean times.Related phenomena, such as cupholes, rock-cut tombs and circles, also occur in West Asia.
Megaliths occur in many parts ofMelanesia, mainly inMilne Bay Province,Fiji andVanuatu. Few excavations have been made and little is known about the structures.The megalith tomb Otuyam atKiriwina has been dated to be approximately 2,000 years old which indicates that megaliths are an old custom in Melanesia. However very few megaliths have been dated. The constructions have been used for different rituals. For example, tombs, sacrifices and rituals of fecundity. Dance sites exist next to some megaliths. In some places in Melanesia rituals are continued to be held at the sacred megalith sites. The fact that the beliefs are alive is a reason that most excavations have been stopped at the sites.
Megalithic structures in Micronesia reach their most developed form on the islands ofPohnpei andKosrae in the Eastern Caroline Islands. On these two islands there was extensive use of prismatic basalt columns to build upland building complexes such as those at Salapwuk on Pohnpei and Menka on Kosrae. These building sites, remote from the ocean, appear to have been abandoned early. Megalithic building then shifted to constructing networks of artificial islands on the coast that supported a multitude of common, royal and religious structures. Dating of the structures is difficult but the complex atNan Madol on Pohnpei was probably inhabited as early as c. 800, probably as artificial islands, with the more elaborate buildings and religious structures added to the site from 1000 to 1400 AD.
Megaliths were used for a variety of purposes ranging from serving as boundary markers of territory, being reminder of past events, to being part of the society's religion.[64] Common motifs including crooks and axes seem to be symbols of political power, much as the crook was a symbol of Egyptian pharaohs. Amongst theindigenous peoples of India,Malaysia,Polynesia, North Africa, North America, and South America, the worship of these stones, or the use of these stones to symbolize a spirit or deity, is a possibility.[65] In the early 20th century, some scholars believed that all megaliths belonged to one global "Megalithic culture"[66] (hyperdiffusionism, e.g. "the Manchester school",[67] byGrafton Elliot Smith andWilliam James Perry), but this has long been disproved by modern dating methods.[citation needed] Nor is it believed any longer that there was a pan-European megalithic culture, although regional cultures existed, even within such small areas as the British Isles. The archaeologist Euan Mackie wrote, "Likewise it cannot be doubted that important regional cultures existed in the Neolithic period and can be defined by different kinds of stone circles and local pottery styles (Ruggles & Barclay 2000: figure 1). No-one has ever been rash enough to claim a nationwide unity of all aspects of Neolithic archaeology!".[68]
Much scholarship over history has suggested that Stone Age peoples moved the large stones on cylindrical wooden rollers. However, there is some disagreement with this theory, specifically as experiments have indicated that this method is impractical on uneven ground. In some contemporary megalith building cultures, such as inSumba,Indonesia, great emphasis is placed on the social status of moving heavy stones without the relief of rollers. In the majority of documented contemporary megalithic-building communities, the stones have been placed on timber sledges and dragged without rollers.[69]
The types of megalithic structure can be divided into two categories, the "polylithic type" and the "monolithic type".[70] Different megalithic structures include:
Polylithic type
Dolmen: a free-standing chamber, consisting of standing stones covered by a capstone as a lid. Dolmens were used for burial and were covered by mounds.
In WestSumba,Indonesia, the more than 20,000 followers[73] of theMarapuanimist religion construct monolithic tombs by hand. Originally built with slave labor, the large tombs of nobles are now built by a class of dependents who are paid either in animals or cash (an amount equal to $0.65–0.90 per day). The tombs are planned long in advance, with families sometimes going into extreme debt to finance the construction. In 1971, one leading family sacrificed 350 buffalo over the course of a year in order to feed the 1,000 people necessary to drag the capstone 3 km from the quarry to the tombsite.[74]
Quarrying the stones for a tomb can take almost a month and typically involves 20–40 laborours, sometimes subcontracted by a relative. It can be months or years before the stones are actually transported to the gravesite, which is done traditionally by hand, using a wooden sled and rollers with the help of many members of the family's clan. Building the sled itself can take several days, and typically males between the ages of 10–60 are assembled to pull the stone from the quarry to the tombsite. Smaller capstones may be moved by a few hundred members of a clan, but larger ones can involve upwards of 2,000 individuals over many days.Sometimes the stones are draped with woven cloths given as gifts by relatives of the owner. The sidewalls are smaller and usually require fewer participants. The entire process is accompanied by large feasts and ritual singers provided by the owner. Some contemporary practitioners now choose to use large machinery and trucks to move the stones.
Once on site, the stones were traditionally assembled and mortared with a mix of water buffalo dung and ash, but are now more commonly cemented together. Typically, the walls are assembled first, and then the capstone is incrementally elevated to the height of the walls by means of a wood scaffolding which is inserted log by log at alternating ends. Once the capstone is at the correct height beside the walls it is slid into place above the tomb. Alternately, some tombs are constructed by dragging the capstone up a fabricated ramp and then assembling the sidewalls below it, before removing the ramp structure to let the capstone rest upon the walls. Often, but not always, the finished structure is decorated by a professional stone carver with symbolic motifs. The carving alone can at times take over a month to complete.[75]
And Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.
— The Old Testament, Book of Exodus, 24:4 (5th century BC)[76]
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