Tucked away in the rolling hills of Normandy, France, the cryptic Tumulus de la Hoguette murmurs the secrets of the Neolithic era, a discovery first mentioned in 1829. It wasn't until the late 1960s that a campaign of extensive excavations took place. Its neighbor, Tumulus de la Hogue, shares the same Neolithic origins and belongs to the common Armoric cairn type. The Tumulus de la Hoguette spans about 550 square meters, with a length of 29 meters and a width of 21 meters.
The cairn features seven circular burial chambers, each accessible by a corridor - three opening to the northwest, three to the southeast, and one to the northeast. Built from local limestone, the structure represents some of the most easterly examples of its type. Due to its fragility, the monument was covered with sand and soil to protect it and is no longer visible today.
In 1983, archaeologist Christian Jeunesse drew parallels between the site and pottery shards found in eastern France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland. These findings featured the same type of garland decor made with a bifid punch. This work led to the proposal of the 'Hoguette Group' name to characterize the temporal and material unity of several Neolithic sites across Europe.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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