A dolmen is a megalithic structure typically formed from a large horizontal stone slab resting on two or more upright slabs. The oldest European examples are found in Brittany, northern France, and date to the 5th millennium BCE. Dolmens are also present in the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, and especially large numbers exist in Korea, with examples there dating to c. 1000 BCE. The structures functioned as burial chambers or as sites of ancient cult worship, for example to an earth or fertility goddess.
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Definition
Timeline
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5000 BCE - 3000 BCEMegalithic structures erected at Carnac, north-west France.
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c. 1000 BCEThe dolmens on Korea's Ganghwa Island are set up.
