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Origin and history

The covered street of the Cosquer, also known as the covered driveway of Creach-Gallic or dolmen of Tréguelecshier, is a megalithic monument located in the commune of Goulven, in the Finistère. This site, dated Neolithic, has been identified as a collective grave with lateral entrance, typical of the funeral constructions of this period. Its structure, oriented north-west/south-east, includes a funeral chamber 3 metres long by 1.60 metres wide, partially covered by a 3.45 metre long slab. The northern part of the monument was damaged during the construction of an adjacent road.

The first known description of the site dates back to 1832, written by the Chevalier de Fréminville. Subsequently, several archaeologists and historians, including William Collings Lukis (1864), Paul du Châtellier (1881) and E. Morel (1926), studied and planned the monument. Covered walkway was classified as historic monuments by two decrees in 1883 and 1920, thus recognizing its heritage importance. The site is characterized by the use of eye-catching gneiss, a local rock extracted nearby, and the presence of a granite slab.

The Dolmen du Cosquer has notable architectural features, such as a line of four orthostats (vertical valleys) between 1.20 and 1.40 metres high, to the southwest. A slab planted vertically to the southeast could correspond to an old cover table. Access to the funeral chamber was probably on the northeast side. Several surrounding slabs, two of which were reused to support a slope, suggest a re-appropriation of materials over the centuries. The site, owned by the commune of Goulven, remains a valuable testimony of the funeral practices and architectural know-how of Neolithic in Brittany.

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