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The "Grand Idol" as seen on the chamber wall.
Early 20th century moulding and interpretative sketch by Z. Le Rouzic.
Moulage du début du XXe siècle avec schéma interprétatif par Z. Le Rouzic.
The 'elbow' tombs of the Morbihan shore, which the Pierres-plates tomb in Locmariaquer belongs to, appeared at a much later date than the passage tombs.
A slab at the entrance of the Pierres-Plates tomb in Locmariaquer quite clearly shows how much their ornamentation was influenced by the ancient shield motif.
Among the many works within this monument, the most impressive and the best preserved specimen is certainly n°10, a rectangular cartouche with rounded corners. It is 85 cm high and 40 cm wide.
It is ringed by three lines forming a band about 10 cm wide.
The cartouche decoration is vertically divided by a line, with four crescents and cup and ring marks on either side.
Most of the signs found in the 'elbow' tombs display a characteristic hollowed top. The resulting 'Tables of the Law' outline can be compared to the braced eyebrow motifs of some Rhodanian statue-menhirs.
The bump on top of the cartouche (cf. picture of the slab) shows that beaks and hollowed tops could be combined on the same shield.