megaliths
Ancient stone structures
Megaliths are large stones used in prehistoric monuments and structures.
The term covers standing stones, stone circles like Stonehenge, dolmens, and burial chambers built from massive slabs.
From Greek words meaning "great stone," the term applies to monuments found across Europe, Asia, and Africa, many dating back thousands of years: The megaliths at Carnac stretch for miles across the Brittany landscape.
Before documented civilization
- archaeologyStudy of physical remnants
- dolmenMegalithic stone tomb
- cromlechMegalithic stone monument
- barrowLoad carrier or tumulus
cairn · ancestors · heritage · excavation · antiquity · artifacts · tribes · civilizations
Open-pit stone mining
- transportMoving things between places
- erectionAct of building upward
- bluestoneBluish-gray construction stone
- graniteIgneous rock, quartz-rich
basalt · sandstone · limestone · sledges · rollers · levers · ramps · labor
Megalithic stone tomb
Formal event marking occasions
- worshipReligious reverence and praise
- sacrificeGiving up something precious
- solsticeDay of maximum tilt
- equinoxSun crosses celestial midline
altar · paganism · rites · fertility · ancestors · pilgrimage · veneration · gathering
Something hard to fathom
- legendsTraditional stories or icons
- mythsTraditional untrue narratives
- unexplainedNot yet clarified
- loreTraditional knowledge transmitted orally
astronomical · alignments · solstice · equinox · phenomena · purpose · origins · builders
prehistoric
Before documented civilization
- archaeologyStudy of physical remnants
- dolmenMegalithic stone tomb
- cromlechMegalithic stone monument
barrow · cairn · ancestors · heritage · excavation · antiquity · artifacts · tribes · civilizations · cultures
quarrying
Open-pit stone mining
- transportMoving things between places
- erectionAct of building upward
- bluestoneBluish-gray construction stone
granite · basalt · sandstone · limestone · sledges · rollers · levers · ramps · labor · engineering
dolmen
Megalithic stone tomb
ceremony
Formal event marking occasions
- worshipReligious reverence and praise
- sacrificeGiving up something precious
- solsticeDay of maximum tilt
equinox · altar · paganism · rites · fertility · ancestors · pilgrimage · veneration · gathering · seasonal
enigma
Something hard to fathom
- legendsTraditional stories or icons
- mythsTraditional untrue narratives
- unexplainedNot yet clarified
lore · astronomical · alignments · solstice · equinox · phenomena · purpose · origins · builders · secrets
massive
Extremely large and heavy
- colossalExtremely large in scale
- toweringOf imposing height
- monumentalExceptionally large or significant
immense · enormous · imposing · hulking · gigantic · titanic · gargantuan · vast · ponderous · formidable
- Asian PrehistoryBronze Age, Chalcolithic, hunter-gatherers, stone tools, pottery shards
- ancient historyancient history, ancient world, classical antiquity, ancient empires, Mesopotamia
- artifactspottery shards, knives, masks, pottery, antiquity
- prehistorystone tools, Stone Age, caveman, cavemen, Bronze Age
- ancient artifactsjade mask, Viking sword, bronze sculptures, antiquities, Roman coin
- ancient sitesPompeii, Stonehenge, pyramids, Colosseum, Giza
megalithsbrickwork
Construction from fired blocks
masonry · dry stone walls · cobblestone · mosaic · timber frames
megalithsgeological features
Earth's physical terrain structures
boulders · erratics · outcrops · bedrock · natural stone