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Origin and history

The southern menhir, nicknamed Pierre Levée des Soux or Pierre de Tonnerre, is a megalith located on Île-d'Yeu in the Vendée department. Although commonly considered a menhir, its exact origin remains uncertain: it could be the remains of a dolmen or megalithic chest. In 1834, Jean-Marie Bachelot de la Pylaie mentioned him among the dolmens of the island, and in 1872 a farmer reported that carriagemen had taken away a blanket table and support a decade earlier.

The stone, facing north-west/south-east, is 1.26 m high with a width ranging from 1.26 m at the base to 1.40 m at the top, with an average thickness of 0.40 m. It is 0.35 m deep in the ground and has a large block setting. Two other smaller stones are placed perpendicular to the east end. The north face, smooth and regular, appears to have been snuffed, while traces such as a break, a notch and a cupula are visible.

Ranked as historical monuments in 1889, the site was searched in 1908 by Marcel Baudouin. The latter described in detail its structure and peculiarities, contributing to a better understanding of this megalithic vestige. The assumptions about its initial function (menhir isolated, dolmen element) remain open, but its archaeological importance is recognized, as evidenced by the studies and bibliographic references devoted to it.

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