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Origin and history

The menhirs of the Plessis are a group of two menhirs (formerly three) located in Bernard, Vendée. According to Léon Audé, in 1841 these stones formed an equilateral triangle of 100 metres. The largest, 7 meters long, was spilled in 1978 and then straightened with a concrete sole, revealing flints and fragments of grinding wheels during its excavation. Ornate with three cups near its summit, it is accompanied by a second menhir of 3.60 meters, whose irregularities at the base, once interpreted as engravings, would be natural.

The third menhir, called the Pierre Folle, was destroyed around 1860. According to Roger Joussaume, these stones could be the vestiges of lost alignments, their present arrangement being incidental. A local legend tells that fairies and frieds lived in Pierre Folle, disrupting the construction of a nearby church by moving the stones used every night.

Classified as historical monuments in 1936, these menhirs illustrate the megalithic heritage of the Vendee. Their study, cited in works such as Mégalithes de Vendée (1993) or La Vendée préhistorique (1997), reveals their archaeological importance. Sources also include references to excavations and assumptions about their origin, such as those of Gérard Benéteau on the natural irregularities of granite.

The site, located at 97 Rue du Dolmen de l'Echaffaud, is referenced in the Merimée database under the code Insee 85022. Menhirs, although protected, remain accessible, testifying to a prehistoric past still mysterious. Their folklore, mixing pagan beliefs and medieval narratives, enriches their cultural dimension.

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