Menhir erection Néolithique (≈ 4100 av. J.-C.)
Estimated construction period
9 juillet 1986
Historical Monument
Historical Monument 9 juillet 1986 (≈ 1986)
Official registration by decree
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Menhir (Box BC 65): entry by order of 9 July 1986
Key figures
Charlemagne - Carolingian Emperor
Will have ordered the near destruction
Jules César - Latin author
Summons of Gauls
Louis Charpentier - Author (*The Giants and the Mystery of Origins*)
Describes the site as a crossroads
Origin and history
The Menhir des Pierres Longues, also known as Butte aux Houx, is a megalithic monument erected in the Neolithic. Located in Saint-Gondon in the Loiret, it is 1.85 metres high and consists of a reddish siliceous conglomerate of Gien puddingue. It was listed in the Historic Monuments on July 9, 1986. According to experts, it could be an isolated vestige of a destroyed cromlech, or an element of a megalithic ensemble extending to Nièvre.
This menhir, unlike the dolmens, was not a burial but could mark a gathering place, a nearby burial or a cult. Saint-Gondon was a strategic crossroads for the Gauls, at the convergence of the territories of Carnuts, Bituriges, Senons and Eduans. The ancient authors place the omphalos, the political center of the Gauls, where three-year assemblies were held. Charlemagne reportedly ordered the destruction of a nearby raised field of stones.
The site, close to the confluence of the Loire and the Quiaulne, was a major crossing point. The local megaliths, before the Gauls, bear witness to an ancient occupation. The menhir des Pierres Longues, isolated today, recalls this story, between prehistoric cult and Gaulish political stakes. Its location, 70 meters from the road to Lion-en-Sullias, makes it an accessible but discreet vestige of the Loiret's megalithic heritage.
