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Origin and history

The covered aisles of Sabatey in Bellefond (Gironde) constitute a small neolithic necropolis composed of two distinct dolmens. The site was first mentioned in 1862 by Ch. Grellet-Balguerie, then mistakenly described by Léo Drouyn around 1870 as a single serpentiform tumulus. It was not until 1879 that François Daleau clearly identified the two monuments and undertook partial excavations on the first dolmen. The two aisles, typical of the Aquitaine buildings, were classified as historical monuments in 1889.

Dolmen No. 1, 9 metres long, retains two partially collapsed roofing tables and a paved ground of fitted stones. Its architecture, with descending orthostats towards the entrance, corresponds to the type "Aquitaine's alley". Funeral objects were discovered there, including a human tooth, black pottery coats, and an anchor-shaped bone fragment, which is now preserved at the Aquitaine Museum. Dolmen No. 2, on the other hand, is in ruins after having served as a stone quarry, leaving visible only an alignment of five orthostats and two covering tables.

Local folklore combines the place with the name of Sabatey, evoking a Sabbath place and witchcraft practices, real or imaginary. Daleau's excavations also revealed human flint and bones, confirming the funeral vocation of the site. Dolmens illustrate the neolithic practices of collective burial and their subsequent reuse as a source of materials, while fuelling persistent legends.

The historical sources come mainly from the works of Léo Drouyn (1874), François Daleau (1879) and later archaeological inventories, such as that of Marc Devignes (1995). The site, although partially degraded, remains a major testimony of megalithism in Gironde, protected since the 19th century for its heritage and scientific value.

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