Filitosa |
Filitosa I |
LOCATION Latitude: 41°44'41.6"N Longitude: 8°52'12.2"E |
Filitosa II |
Filitosa III |
Filitosa IV |
Filitosa V |
Filitosa VI |
Tappa I |
Filitosa, the Prehistoric Capitol of Corsica, is a megalithic site in southern Corsica, France. Its period of occupation spans from the end of the Neolithic era and the beginning of the Bronze Age, until around the Roman times in Corsica. In 1946, the owner of the site, Mr. Charles - Antoine Cesari, discovered for the first time, lying at the foot of the hillock at Filitosa, several statues-menhirs. He also uncovered, on the spur, vestiges of very old buildings. Mr. M. P. Lamotte, then the Chief Archivist of Corsica, saw on inspecting the site, the importance of this discovery. Mr. Roger Grosjean, a CNRS archaeologist on a visit to Corsica, undertook, with the constant agreement and assistance of Mr. Cesari, the systematic excavation of Filitosa. Finds of arrow heads and pottery date earliest inhabitation to 3300 BC. Around 1500 BC, 2-3 metre menhirs were erected. The Cesari family has since ensured the conservation and maintenance of the site. The ancient megalithic sculptors have made Filitosa the largest centre of Corsican and Mediterranean statuary art. Filitosa contains 50% of Corsican anthropomorphic menhirs and nearly 30% of Corsican statues-menhirs. The site also contains a small museum. In total, about twenty menhirs of various times were counted in Filitosa. They constitute approximately half of the total stock of these monuments in Corsica. After the anthropomorphic period around 1200 BC, construction of building of large circular monuments, the ‘torre’ began. |
Western Torre Monument |
Central Torre Monument |
Other Monuments |
Filitosa VII |
Filitosa VIII |
Filitosa IX |
Filitosa X |
Filitosa XI |