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Origin and history

The Dolmens of the Adrets form a megalithic set of four collective burials near Brignoles, in the Var. Discovered in 1962 by Georges Bérard, they were searched in the same year (n°1 to 3) and in 1986 (n°4). Their simple architecture, with rectangular or square chambers and oval tumulus, reflects funeral practices of the Chalcolithic, with multiple burials (estimated at 150-200 individuals) and characteristic furniture (campaniform ceramics, trimmings, flint weapons).

Dolmen No. 4, the most recent, is distinguished by its abundant funerary furniture (pearls, pendants, flint dagger) and a particular method of burial: the bodies, deposited without initial burial, were disarticulated after decomposition to organize the bones by type. The excavations revealed traces of subsequent occupation, especially in Roman times, as well as ancient lootings that disrupted the archaeological layers.

Ranked historic monuments in 1988 (inscription for #1-3, classification for #4), these dolmens illustrate the evolution of funeral practices between the Chalcolithic and the Bronze Age. Their restoration in 1992 by Hélène Barge allowed us to preserve fragile structures, such as dry stone walls or the cover table of the dolmen n°4, rare example intact in the Var. Anthropological studies (especially on the teeth of dolmen no. 4) estimated 89 individuals buried, with an overrepresentation of children aged 5 to 10.

The whole is part of a hilly landscape (341 to 352 m above sea level), overlooking the plain of Brignoles. The tumulus, of varying shapes and dimensions (6-12 m in diameter), were constructed of local piers, sometimes contained by double-walled walls. Their western orientation and their position on peaks suggest a deliberate choice linked to symbolic or practical considerations, such as visibility or flood protection.

The excavations revealed a variety of furniture: ceramics (globular vase with campaniform decor, iron age urn), lithic tools (arrow frames, 17 cm dagger), and ornament elements (391 doves, bone or limestone pendants). These artifacts reflect extensive exchange networks and a hierarchical society, where dolmens served both as burial sites and as territorial markers for agro-pastoral communities.

The violation of dolmen n°3 in the sixth century, attested by sigillated ceramic teasses, reveals a late re-appropriation of these sites, perhaps linked to their monumental character. Despite archaeological disturbances (pillages, later occupations), these dolmens remain a major source for understanding funeral rites and the social organization of southeastern France between 2500 and 1500 BC.

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