Carnac

When most people think of Carnac they think 'standing stones' and yes there are thousands of them, depending who you believe there are between 3,000 and 10,000, on three sites which may have been one enormous site c3000BC. 

Time, farmers using stones as building material and modern planers pushing roads through the sites may have caused the splintering into the three we see to day but they are certainly responsible for the damage done to these sites. There are still debates on how to preserve the sites. They are not an easy thing to photograph as the menhirs are not that tall, you can walk around the perimeter fence but you can only get into the stones at restricted times. 

I think Callanish on Lewis is far more dramatic and a much easier subject. On the bright side there is close to the Kermario (house of the dead) site Chez Celint who do a very good crepe, as was the carved tree stump. 

There are two legends as to how the stones were formed; a Christian myth associated with the stones is that they are pagan soldiers who were in pursuit of Pope Cornelius who turned them into stone. Local tradition claims the stones are in such straight lines is that they are a Roman legion turned into stone by Merlin.

When we went it was Sunday so the town market was in full swing, somewhat different to the tranquillity of the standing stones. 

Tony Middleton