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Origin and history

The Menhir de la Pierre des Fées, located in Janzé in Ille-et-Vilaine, is a megalithic monument emblematic of the Neolithic period. This block of purple shale, of prismatic form with quadrangular base, culminates at 4.04 meters south side and 2.10 meters north side, with a maximum width of 2.80 meters. Its bevelled top and imposing mass make it a remarkable vestige of funeral or ritual practices of the time.

Ranked as historical monuments by order of 19 October 1963, this menhir was once accompanied by a second block, now destroyed. The latter, described by Paul Bézier in 1883, was 4.30 metres long and was about 70 metres from the current menhir. His disappearance before 1922 illustrates the vulnerability of these archaeological testimonies to human activities.

The studies carried out, notably by Jacques Briard and Loïc Langouët, underline the importance of the megaliths of Ille-et-Vilaine in understanding Breton neolithic societies. These monuments, often linked to collective practices, marked the landscape and probably served as symbolic or territorial landmarks. Their preservation allows today to study the techniques of size and transport of stones at this distant time.

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