A History of France, to 1852 [by W H Jervis] by W H Jervis

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Chap. I. DRUIDICAL MONUMENTS. staled originally of several thousands of these rude pillars of granite, and has been likened to an army of petrified giants. The dolmen is composed of a large block or slab of stone supported horizontally upon two or more stones in an upright position, so as to form a sort of...
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Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Chap. I. DRUIDICAL MONUMENTS. staled originally of several thousands of these rude pillars of granite, and has been likened to an army of petrified giants. The dolmen is composed of a large block or slab of stone supported horizontally upon two or more stones in an upright position, so as to form a sort of table or altar. It was upon these, no doubt, that the sacrifices were offered. They are known in France by different names?pierre levee, pierre couverte, pierre levade. Sometimes they are of considerable size, and form a stone chamber or grotto, through which a man may pass upright: dolmens of this kind are called alle'es couvertes, or alles des fe'es. To these must be added the cromlech, or circle of stones, which is supposed to have some occult connexion with the serpent-worship of the Druids;t the pierre branlante, or rock ing-stone, poised with such exquisite precision on a single point as to be easily moveable by the hand, notwithstanding its stupendou8 bulk; and the tumulus, or barrow, which was the usual place of sepulture. H. Martin, i. 49. f The serpent, from its property of changing its skin every year, was the symbol of constantly renewed existence?of immortality: hence its appearance in the mystical system of the Druids. Dnudlc Dolmen, named Pieire Levee, near Poitiers, 13 feet long and 3 thick NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. A. AUTHORITIES. The most complete collection of the original documents from which the History of France is drawn is that entitled Reeueil dca Historiena des Gaulea st de la France, in 20 vols. folio, the first of which was published in 1738, and dedicated to Louie XV. This noble work is the production of the Benedie- Mnes of the congregation of St. Maur; the principal editor being the celebrated Dom Martin Bouquet. It is n...