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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Dolmen de Cornevache, located in Selommes in the department of Loir-et-Cher, is a megalithic building dating from the Neolithic period. Ranked a historic monument by decree of 31 March 1980, it is distinguished by its structure in portico, partially ruined. The funerary chamber, square (2 m side), is covered with a glossy sandstone cover table, a rare material locally, while the other slabs are made of Beauce limestone extracted on site. The east-west orientation and the presence of two residual carrier supports suggest a ritualized entrance.

During its excavation in 1925, the site revealed a regular internal roadway in rubble, as well as modest archaeological furniture: two unperformed wild boar defences, human bones (mainly young individuals), ten worn teeth and a red ocer fragment. These findings, combined with the disturbed state of the chamber, suggest an earlier looting. The searchers noted that all the slabs, with the exception of the table, came from local resources, highlighting an adaptation to the available materials.

The building illustrates neolithic funeral practices in the Centre-Val de Loire region, where dolmens served as collective burials. Its ranking among historical monuments underlines its heritage importance, although its exact location remains approximate (estimated at 5/10). The studies, like those of Jackie Despriée and Claude Leymarios (1974), list him among the megaliths emblematic of the Loir-et-Cher, while highlighting the damage suffered during the initial excavations.

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