Orientations of the Provençal Dolmens

Abstract

Michael Hoskin writes: In our 1999 issue we published a lengthy article on “Orientations of 935 dolmens of southern France”, based on the work of the late Yves Chevalier. 1 The second section discussed dolmens in the area of the Lower Rhône. However, Chevalier had not been able to investigate the eastern half of this region (consisting mainly of the départements of Provence, together with Alpes-Maritimes, see Figure 1). Yet these départements, which extend eastwards along the Mediterranean coast towards the Italian frontier, contain a significant number of dolmens, whose orientations are of great interest. The article that follows is written by the acknowledged authority on these monuments,2 and has the great merit of covering virtually all those dolmens of the area for which reliable orientations can be established. Although most of the orientations were measured only to the nearest 5°, or even 10°, and information on altitudes is lacking, the pattern of orientation is unambiguous: Without a single exception, the Provençal dolmens faced between about 205° and 290°, which may be interpreted as directions in which the sun could be seen descending or setting. This is the reverse of the situation in Iberia, where nearly all the dolmens faced sunrise or the sun when it was climbing in the sky.

Patterns of Orientation in the Megalithic Tombs of the Western Mediterranean

“…It seems to originate in Fontvielle, a small town not far from Arles (Sauzade 2000). There four communal tombs have been discovered that are utterly different to the tombs we have been considering.…”

‘The Dead are Watching Us’: A Landscape Study of Prehistoric Rock-cut Tomb Cemeteries in Ossi, Sardinia, Italy

“…-Tombs are located on rocky hill slopes with a southeast aspect; -Tombs are deliberately orientated toward specific settled areas located within a 200-600 m range (up to 1.5 km in one occasion) from the cemeteries, and at a similar altitude to the tombs in the landscape; (eg, MacKie 1997;Sauzade 2000;Hoskin 2008;Saletta 2011). It has also been argued that sunset orientations were aimed at producing particular light effects inside Neolithic burial monuments (Hensey 2008;González-García et al 2019).…”

“…However, most interpretations revolve around religious symbolism or cosmographic considerations. Orientations are typically interpreted in relation to particular celestial phenomena such as solstices, the equinox, or constellations, which were presumably central in prehistoric religious belief systems, ritual practices, calendars, or cosmologies (eg, MacKie 1997;Sauzade 2000;Hoskin 2008;Saletta 2011). It has also been argued that sunset orientations were aimed at producing particular light effects inside Neolithic burial monuments (Hensey 2008;González-García et al 2019).…”

Orientations of dolmens in Western Europe

“…Working on the principle that customs become increasingly relaxed at greater distances from their source, archaeologists have pinpointed the origin of the west-facing tombs -so anomalous in the broad European context -at Fontvielle, near Arles (Sauzade 2000). The Fontvieille tombs were not prominent surface structures as in most other places; in fact, they were not surface structures at all.…”