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Origin and history

The dolmen known as Les Palets-de-Gargantua is a megalithic monument located in Charnizay, in the department of Indre-et-Loire, in the Centre-Val de Loire region. Dated from the Neolithic, it consists of a 3.30 m long orthostat supporting a 5.50 m cover table, as well as a third slab lying on the ground, probably a second orthostat or an additional table. The slabs, in puddingue, suggest a local origin, although the building now seems incomplete.

Ranked as historical monuments by order of 29 November 1951, the dolmen became the property of the French Prehistoric Society in 1911, thanks to a donation. Its name evokes the giant Gargantua, a legendary figure associated with several megalithic sites in France. According to local folklore, his wife reportedly carried the slabs in his apron, or Gargantua threw these "palets" to another nearby megalith, the Rise Stone of Civray-sur-Esves.

The site was the subject of studies published in the Bulletin de la Société préhistorique de France (1951) and listed in the Inventory of Megaliths of France (1963) by Gérard Cordier. Although its exact function remains hypothetical, its typical structure — covering table and orthostats — links it to the Neolithic collective burials. Today, the dolmen is managed by an association and accessible to the public, although its exact location (118 La Baubinière) is reported as approximate (precision: 5/10).

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