La Hougue Bie
La Hougue Bie Passage Grave
Middle Neolithic (~4000–3500 BCE; medieval chapel atop)·Armorican / Channel Neolithic (Norman Neolithic)·🇬🇧 Jersey, Channel Islands, United Kingdom
No machine-readable author provided. Man vyi assumed (based on copyright claims). · Public domain
About
About La Hougue Bie
Jersey's paramount Neolithic monument crowns a 12-m artificial mound containing a cruciform passage grave with a 12-m roofed chamber aligned so equinox sunrise illuminates the rear cell. Capstones weigh over 10 tonnes and bear cup marks. Henry Helier's 12th-century chapel built atop and enlarged into a neo-Gothic double chapel in 18th–19th century encapsulates 6,000 years of sacred reuse from megalith to Jerusalem Chapel.
Why it mattersJersey's paramount Neolithic monument crowns a 12-m artificial mound containing a cruciform passage grave with a 12-m roofed chamber aligned so equinox sunrise illuminates the rear cell. Capstones wei
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Equinox alignment precision – intentional or opportunistic after medieval mound heightening
- 02Imported diabase capstone source from 40 km offshore
Theories
- 01Channel Island sacred mountain analog to Carnac mounds mediating Norman–Breton Neolithic interaction
- 02Continuous sacred hill from megalithic ancestor cult to Christian pilgrimage
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.4000–3500 BCE (passage tomb); mound enlarged medieval
- Period
- Middle Neolithic (~4000–3500 BCE; medieval chapel atop)
- Culture
- Armorican / Channel Neolithic (Norman Neolithic)
- Purpose
- Passage grave with 12-m capstone alignment to equinox sunrise and later medieval chapel mound
- Excavation
- Excavated
c.4000–3500 BCE (passage tomb); mound enlarged medieval
Initial construction
c. 1239 CE
Major expansion
On the ground
Structures & features
49.2069° N · 2.0678° W · 50 m · 2 mapped features
Passage Grave Chamber
chamberCruciform chamber with 12-m passage aligned to equinox sun
49.2069° N · 2.0678° WNotre Dame Chapel atop Mound
chapelMedieval Jerusalem Chapel built directly over Neolithic mound
49.2070° N · 2.0677° W
Gallery