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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Menhir de la Haute-Borne is a block of local limestone (upper Portlandian) measuring 6.56 metres high, located in Fontaines-sur-Marne, near the Châtelet de Gourzon site. It is located on the edge of an ancient Roman way from Segessera (Bar-sur-Aube) to Nasium (Naix-aux-Forges), demonstrating its role in ancient travel. A Latin inscription, "VIROMARUS ISTATILIF", engraved at a height of 3.41 m, evokes a character named Viromarus, interpreted as "Viromarus son d'Istatili" by the historians Espranze and Lepage.

The monument was overturned by a storm on 26 November 1782, revealing a crack absent from previous descriptions (including those of engineer Legendre in 1751 and of Grignon's drawing in 1773). He remained in bed for 63 years before being straightened in 1845 by the Prefect Romieu, then buried 1 meter deep. Ranked as historical monuments on 26 December 1883, it embodies both a prehistoric vestige and a historical landmark linked to Roman exchanges.

According to a local legend, the menhir is the spindle lost by a Lorrain fairy going to the mills in Rachecourt. This oral tradition, although after the megalithic era, illustrates the cultural anchoring of the site in Champagne folklore. Modern studies, such as those of Eric Mahieu or Louis Lepage, highlight its importance among the megalithic sites of the Haute-Marne, alongside other listed monuments in the region.

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