Celtic Stones
Mael-Pestivien - Peumerit-Quintin
Quite frankly, I was completely taken aback. During the past couple of years that I have been visiting megaliths for the Journal, I had never seen anything like the Celtic Stones, also called the Pierres Causantes (Chatting Stones), and I believe that few people have.
It was a biting-cold December afternoon when I set out by bicycle on my pilgrimage to the stones - and a pilgrimage it certainly turned out to be; I had underestimated the distance, so ended up making a 40 km round trip, which made me both tired and very cold.
At one end of Mael-Pestivien, the road forks. The right fork (direction Lanrivain) is marked by a nearly-faded signpost for the ‘Pierres Celtiques de Pempoul’ - our destination.
The stones are quite a distance down this little road, just after the hamlet and chapel of Coat Maël. A long track leads off through the picturesque, rock-studded pastureland of Maël Pestivien. Finally I reached the summit of the hill, which was a small wilderness of heath and trees. The Celtic Stones stand at the very top, towering over the surrounding countryside. I have rarely seen anything quite so impressive. Two towers of stones mirror each other, almost identical, with a small crack running between the two. What are the origins, and what is the significance of the site? Their name refers to their being ‘Celtic Stones’, and they occupy a position not far from the Chaire des Druides (which is in fact in full view), a site generally accepted to be a place of ancient worship. Almost certainly the Pierres Celtiques were also a holy site.
As I climbed back down the hill the sun was setting, and as the world grew black, my attention was drawn to the brilliant colours of the sky. I believe I had visited one of man’s earliest temples, which had lost none of its power to inspire awe, even after many thousands of years.
Access:In Mael-Pestivien the site is marked as the ‘Pierres Celtiques’, but later on changes its name to the ‘Pierres Causantes’. Access is good, and dry at all times of the year, but it is quite a walk from the road.
