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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The covered lane of the Bertinière, also known as Grotte or Maison des Fées, is a megalithic monument located in La Sauvagere, in the department of Orne, Normandy. Oriented east-west, it extends 15 metres long, with a width of between 1.10 m and 1.40 m, and a height of less than 1.10 m. Its structure is composed of eighteen quartz sandstone orthostats, initially covered by nine tables of the same material, except one granite. In the east, a square room (1.45 m side) may have been closed by two round slabs, one of which is still standing.

The excavations of 1881, conducted by M. de Contades, revealed a modest funeral furniture: a human bone, a sharp polished stone, adorned black pottery coats, two cut flints and calcined stones. These remains suggest a funeral or ritual use during Neolithic, a period marked by the emergence of agriculture and collective structures such as megalithic burials.

Ranked a historic monument on February 17, 1967, the site is also associated with local legends evoking evil dwarfs, fantastic hares and fairies capable of imprisoning livestock. These stories reflect popular beliefs attached to megaliths, often perceived as mysterious or supernatural places. The monument thus illustrates both the archaeological and the imaginary folk heritage of Normandy.

Historical sources, such as the works of Léon Coutil (1918, 1926), document its importance among the megalithic sites of the Orne. Today, covered alley remains a rare testimony of neolithic funeral practices in the region, while asking questions about its exact use and evolution over the millennia.

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