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Origin and history

La Table au Diable is a megalithic covered driveway located in Passais Villages, Orne department, Normandy. Dated between 3200 and 2200 B.C., thanks to excavations carried out in the 1990s, it belongs to the recent Neolithic. This funerary monument, oriented east-west, consists of a 12 m long chamber bounded by dolerite orthostates, surrounded by a granite ovoid cairn. Archaeologists discovered a modest furniture: flint tools (lames, arrow frames, scrapers), including three flint objects from Grand-Pressigny, as well as coarse pottery and a campaniform cup.

The building was restored in the 1990s, consolidating its monumental structure. Ranked as historical monuments since 16 August 1973, it illustrates the collective funeral architecture of Neolithic. About ten local oral traditions remain associated with this site, reflecting its importance in regional folklore. The published studies, notably by Antoine Chancerel and Léon Coutil, document his role in the sepulchral practices of the time.

The site is distinguished by its imposing peristalith in facade, consisting of large granite blocks. Campaniform ceramics found on site confirm its use during the final Neolithic period, marked by the growth of agriculture and sedentary societies. Although the funerary furniture is scarce, it offers a valuable testimony to the cultural exchanges (silex du Grand-Pressigny) and the mortuary rituals of that time.

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