Despite the help of modern technology, the builders were unable to achieve the same level of precision as the Bronze Age builders.Ĭaucasian dolmen displaying straight and precise edges and joints, and a perfectly formed circle in the centre. In 2007, it was decided to reconstruct a dolmen from the stones plates of destroyed structures in Gelendzhik and carry out the processing and fitting with high-precision electric tools. The joint places are so close in places that it is impossible to even slide a knife blade between the plates. Within most of the dolmens, the huge stone plates join each other precisely with specially made grooves. The construction itself is also awe-inspiring. The average weight of each structure is from 15 to 30 tons, yet there is not even the slightest trace of a quarry in the Western Caucasus, nor have any paths been found with evidence of heavy loads having been brought to the build site. Photo source: BigStockPhotoĪpproximately 3,000 of these megalithic monuments are known in the Western Caucasus, but more are constantly being found. It is in this area that Bronze and Iron Age pottery has been found, along with human remains, bronze tools, and ornaments made from silver, gold, or precious stones.ĭolmen surrounded by stone wall, forming a centre court. The court is usually outlined by large stone walls, sometimes over a meter high. In front of the facade is a court that usually extends out, creating an area where rituals are believed to have taken place. Most of the Caucasian dolmens contain an almost perfectly formed circle at the front. Stone plugs have been found at almost every tomb, and were used to block the portal at the front. While round holes are the most common, square ones have also been found. The stones were, for example, shaped into 90-degree angles, to be used as corners, and all of them are punctuated with a portal in the centre of the facade.
While there are tens of thousands of known dolmens throughout the world, particularly throughout Europe, the Caucasian dolmens represent a unique type of prehistoric architecture, built with precisely dressed cyclopic stone blocks. Archaeologists put their age at 4000 to 6,000 years old, based on pottery found in the vicinity of the dolmens, as well as human remains, but there is no way to prove whether these were put there much later.
The Russians call the megalithic structures dolmens, which means ‘portal tomb’, but despite the name, there is no solid evidence that their original purpose was for burial. Archaeologists do not know who built them, where the stones came from, or what their true purpose was, leading to much speculation in the scientific community. Yet dotted within the pristine landscape are thousands of ancient megalithic structures built many millennia ago. The Western Caucasus, extending over 275,000 ha of the extreme western end of the Caucasus mountains and located 50 km north-east of the Black Sea, is one of the few large mountain areas of Europe that has not experienced significant human impact.
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