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Origin and history

The megalithic hemicycle of Cojoux, located in Saint-Just en Ille-et-Vilaine, is a chamber composed of nine quartz blocks arranged in arc of circle over 27 meters, with a tenth isolated block 50 meters east. According to a local legend, this block would represent an accused person facing his judges, giving the site the nickname of Tribunal. Four of the blocks are now overturned, and at least six others disappeared in 1869 when a road was built. This monument, dated Neolithic, was probably related to the observation of sunsets during the summer solstice.

In the vicinity, a trapezoidal Tumular Terten (16.50 m long) was present until the early 20th century, before being dismantled for the construction of a road. This terre, represented on 19th-century sketches, had a lateral entrance marked by blocks of quartz and shale, as well as a menhir of 1.10 m high. The dismantled stones were moved to the edge of the road, where some are still visible. The site, comparable to that of Pen-ar-lan on the island of Ouessant, has been listed as historical monuments since July 21, 1978.

Historical sources mention surveys by J. Desmars in 1869, as well as illustrations by A. Ramé (1864) and Pitre de Lisle du Dreneuc (1882), which document the state of the terre before its destruction. The site now belongs to the Ille-et-Vilaine department. Its architecture and alignment suggest an astronomical and funerary function, typical of the Breton megalithic constructions of this period.

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