Dolmen of Sainte-Madeleine




Dolmen of Sainte-Madeleine
From Glyn Daniel's book 'Megaliths in History' 1972: 
"The capstone was fourteen and a half feet long by twelve foot broad by three and a half feet thick, supported by columns of Romanesque design with twelfth-century capitals. The site was originally a single simple rectangular chamber: each pillar was inserted separately under the capstone and the site was translated into a Christian chapel. On the underside of the capstone you will find today two incised symbols - a cross and a hafted axe. Here indeed, in art and architecture, the elder faith and Christianity appear to be wedded." 
This dolmen was transformed in the Middle Ages into a chapel, with columns surmounted by carved capitals. Excavations carried out in 1878 made it possible to discover a medieval burial ground with a jug and a terracotta altar-cruet. This unusual chapel was classified as a historic monument in 1900.
According to local legend St. Madeleine arrived on the island carrying the table of the dolmen on her head and the columns in the pockets of her apron. When she ran up to leap over the arm of the Vienne and reach the island, she pushed against the bank and her foot impressed itself in the rock. A mass was celebrated in honour of the saint on 22nd July. The "Sainte-Madeleine footprint" is visible today, near the place called Les Marteaux. The Sainte- Madeleine island, also called the Saint Germain island, has been part of the commune of Lessac since 1791. This island is now private and not open to the public.

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