These are little-known treasures of Arras and the Pays d’Artois. A number of megalithic sites make for an astonishing walk, offering mysteries and legends, history and amazing landscapes. Head for the Scarpe Valley and the Sensée Valley, on the trail of the megaliths of the Pays d’Artois.

Some solitary stones stand in valley bottoms: one such is the Pierre du Diable (Devil’s Stone) in Oisy-le-Verger and the Pierres Jumelles (Twin Stones) of Acq. Others are arranged circles in a high location, like the Sept Bonnettes in Sailly-en-Ostrevent. Were these religious or funerary structures, commemorative grave markers or monuments with the function of markers? Landmarks or observatories? Everyone has their own theory. Now it is for you to discover them, not forgetting to touch them as this is said to bring good luck!

Top 1 – watch the sun set over the Pierres Jumelles

Head for the charming Heritage Village labelled Mont-Saint-Eloi, 10 minutes to the north-east of Arras.

Two menhirs in rough sandstone quarried from the surrounding hills stand to their full height with an extraordinary view of the abbey ruins. Legend holds that they arrived here as the result of the Devil’s fit of anger. Queen Brunhilde had promised her soul to him if he built her a road in one night. 

Just minutes before he completed his task, the queen is said to have awoken a cockerel whose crowing meant the Devil lost his bet. Furious, he is said to have flung the two stones he was holding in his hands just metres from the Chaussée Brunehaut, a Roman road linking Arras to Thérouanne. And when the sun goes down, between dusk and dawn the stones take on an almost supernatural glow.

Erected on the top of a barrow, these stones (one has fallen and another has disappeared) are said to be young girls who were turned to statues as punishment for dancing instead of going to Vespers. Many mysteries still surround the origin of this structure.

To be seen on the route

Erected on the top of a barrow, these stones (one has fallen and another has disappeared) are said to be young girls who were turned to statues as punishment for dancing instead of going to Vespers. Many mysteries still surround the origin of this structure.

Top 3 – Do some stone hugging at Gros Caillou

Head south-east towards Oisy-le-Verger, 15 minutes from Sailly-en-Ostrevent, taking time to admire the green rural landscapes of the Sensée Valley.

Head south-east towards Oisy-le-Verger, 15 minutes from Sailly-en-Ostrevent, taking time to admire the green rural landscapes of the Sensée Valley. You are in the heart of the “Artois Bleu” (blue Artois) which is crisscrossed by water courses and pools. In Oisy-le-Verger, whose Celtic origins have been proven, a giant watches over the territory: it is a colossal menhir, hewn out of a block of sandstone, 2.9 metres high by 1.1 metres wide.

It shares the same legend as the Twin Stones. Except this time the Devil had made a pact with a group of nuns to construct a convent, before being taken unawares before dawn ! It is advisable to wear boots in wet weather. The menhir stands in a damp area of marshes and wetlands and the path leading to it is frequently boggy..

The megaliths of the Pays d’Artois in practise

  • The Twin Stones of Acq – Where? At the Mont-Saint-Eloi exit on the D341, take the first narrow lane on the left and go straight on for approximately 800 metres. The stones are in a field on your right. You are in a locality called “Les Droites Pierres” (literally, “the upright stones”) in the village of Mont-Saint-Eloi, close to the hamlet of Ecoivres. WALK: “Le Chemin des Pierres du Diable”, route no. 16 of the CUA. 10 km, 2 hours 30 minutes. Starts from: Chemin d’Aubigny in Acq.
  • Les Sept Bonnettes – Where: From the church square in Sailly-en-Ostrevent, go down the Rue du Pont and take the first road on the left, onto the D43 (the Bapaume road). The Sept Bonnettes can be reached by foot, taking the second path on your right. WALK: “Les Bonnettes”, 21 km, 6 hours 40 minutes. Starts from the church square in Sailly-en-Ostrevent.
  • Le Gros Caillou – Where: between the Bequerel marsh and the Canal du Nord. From Palleul, take the D13 and then the Chemin du Parquiau. The menhir is at the end of a path on your left (arrow sign). WALK: “Le Gros Caillou”, 12 km, 4 hours. Starts from: Place de la Mairie, Oisy-le-Verger.