1872.] The Amorpholithic Monuments of Brittany. 437 
that ‘‘of all the monuments usually called Celtic, whether 
of pillar-stones, chambers, circles, avenues, &c., the simple 
chamber, cromlech or dolmen, with or without its covered 
gallery, is now generally acknowledged to be the earliest.” 
But to us there seems every reason to suppose that the 
stone avenues hereafter described belong to a period far 
anterior to that when the menhirs and dolmens were erected, 
when we compare their shape and position. These assem- 
blages of stones are conspicuous for their want of uniformity, 
absence of elegance, and, in fact, general shapelessness— 
some globular, others rhomboidal, &c.—all sorts of irregular, 
fantastic, rough, and bizarre forms. The finest appear to 
have been chosen for their majesty of size and bulk alone, 
and but little heed taken as to how or in what position they 
should stand as long as they were in their proper alignment ; 
they are erected any side uppermost, as often as not with 
their heavier portion in the air, being well nigh balanced on 
their smaller end; so much so, as would lead one to suppose 
sometimes that they had been designedlyso placed. Although 
it is possible that they were originally thus placed in 
equilibrium, still it is more probable that they were left in 
the readiest position which came to hand. ‘There is no 
trace of their having been fashioned artificially. At all 
events they present a striking contrast to the isolated pillar- 
like menhirs of smooth elegant exterior, placed generally with 
an especial view to their stability, and exhibiting a practical 
knowledge of the position of the centre of gravity on the 
part of those who erected them. Many of the menhirs 
present the appearance of having been fashioned artificially, 
as at Locmariaquer, where that magnificent specimen, Le 
Grand Menhir, now lying in four pieces, exhibits the artificial 
handiwork of man; whilst on the south side of the menhir, 
La Boulaie (Moustoir-ac), are two sculptured figures in relief, 
whilst others exhibit fluting, and other signs of ornamenta- 
tion belonging to an advanced period of art. Again, we 
know that the custom of erecting monoliths has descended 
down to historic times; thus we have records of the 
erection of memorial pillar-stones (the Bauta-stones and 
Minne-stones of Scandinavia, for instance, and the Gullaunes 
of Ireland)— , 
Blissful a Son is 
tho’ born but lately, 
his father already fallen ; 
seldom Bauta-stones 
bound the folk-path 
save raised by kin to kindred. 
The “ Elder Edda,” Havamél, v. 71. 
Professor Stephens’s Trans. 
