Megalithism and Early Religious Beliefs

Megalithism refers to the cultural phenomenon, characteristic of much of Atlantic and Mediterranean Europe during the late Neolithic and the Metal Ages, involving the construction of monuments from large stone blocks. Among its best-known expressions are menhirs — upright stone blocks standing alone or in alignments; dolmens — funerary chambers formed by vertical slabs supporting a horizontal capstone; and cromlechs — circular arrangements of stones.