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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Madeleine's spindle is a whitish quartz sandstone menhir, marked by numerous cracks. Measuring 5.65 m high (initially estimated at 7 m by Pitre de Lisle du Dréneuc), it is the highest standing menhir in the Loire-Atlantique department. His tapered shape earned him his name as a "spindle", while "la Madeleine" referred to a nearby place, where today the Pontchâteau Calvary is located. The stone, broken at the top and on its east flank, has a perimeter of 7.70 m to 2 m from the ground.

Ranked as historical monuments in 1889, this menhir testifies to the importance of megalithic constructions in the area during the Neolithic period. Its present state is the result of deteriorations after its erection, although its exact location – 24 Route du Menhir-Le Calvaire – and its communal property are clearly attested. The sources, such as the Archaeological Dictionary of the Loire-Inferior (1882) or the Monthly Sheets of the Nantaise Section of Prehistory (1962), confirm its historical and archaeological anchor.

Menhir illustrates the cultural and religious practices of neolithic societies, which erected these stones for probably symbolic or commemorative purposes. Its early ranking (1889) highlights the rapid recognition of its heritage value, in a department rich in megalithic sites. Today, there remains an emblematic vestige of this heritage, accessible to the public and integrated into the local landscape.

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