Cupula erratic block à La Verpillière dans l'Isère

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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

La Verpillière is a remarkable megalithic stone, now part of the monument to the dead of the commune. Originally from Saint-Quentin-Fallavier, this 80-ton triasic breach block, 4 metres long for 2 metres high, was acquired in 1919 by the Mayor of La Verpillière. Its upper face has shallow but well visible cuplets, characteristic of prehistoric cupstones. During its extraction in September 1919, a collective burial was discovered in the immediate vicinity, revealing about fifteen bodies arranged in successive burials, separated by stone slabs.

The tomb, located more than a metre deep on the east side of the stone, contained archaeological furniture attributed to the Chalcolithic. This material, now lost but documented by photographs kept at the Musée Dauphinois in Grenoble, included flint blades, steatite beads, deer wood objects, and a dormant millstone. These artifacts suggest an organized human occupation and funeral practices developed during this transition period between Neolithic and Bronze Age. The stone was classified as a historic monument by decree of 29 March 1926, recognizing its exceptional heritage value.

The acquisition of this block in 1919 was part of a post-First World War memorial, where many French communes erected monuments to the dead. The choice of using a megalithic stone, already full of history, adds a strong symbolic dimension to this monument. The fortuitous discovery of the burial during the clearing work also allowed to enrich the knowledge of the funeral practices of the Chalcolithic in the Dauphin region, although unfortunately the archaeological material was later lost.

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