Menhir

menhir (mĕn`hēr') [Breton,=long stone], in archaeology, name given to the single standing stones of Western Europe, and by extension to those of other lands. Their size varies and their shape is rough and squared, tapering toward the top. See megalithic monuments.

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menhir

Type of ancient megalithic stone monument (see megalith). Menhirs were simple upright stones, sometimes of great size, erected chiefly in Western Europe. Arrangements of menhirs often form vast circles, semicircles, or ellipses. Many were built in Britain, the best-known sites being Stonehenge and Avebury in Wiltshire. Menhirs were also placed in parallel rows, called alignments, the most famous being the Carnac alignments in northwestern France, with 2,935 menhirs. These were probably used for ritual processions.

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menhir

a single standing stone, often carved, dating from the middle Bronze Age in the British Isles and from the late Neolithic Age in W Europe

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menhir

A prehistoric monument consisting of a single large standing stone, sometimes rudely sculptured.

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Menhir 

the simplest type of megalithic structure, consisting of a single block of upright stone sunk into the ground. Menhirs measure 4-5 m high and more; the highest one is in France, and it stands 20 m high and weighs about 300 tons. Menhirs some-times form long avenues (as in Karnak) or are sometimes ar-ranged in a circle (cromlechs). Apparently, they had a religious significance. Most of the menhirs are in northwestern Europe, but some have been found in Asia and Africa. They are common in the USSR in certain parts of Siberia and the Caucasus.

REFERENCE

Schuchhardt, C. Alteuropa, 4th ed. Berlin, 1941.