The megaliths at Carnac date from the Neolithic period from 4.500 B.C. until 2.000 B.C. During this period of human history there was a gradual change from hunting, fishing and gathering into a more sedentary way of life with agriculture and cattle keeping.
The types of megaliths found at Carnac are Alignments (menhirs placed in parallel lines), Dolmens (funeral monuments of stone), Menhir (big standing stones on the ground) and Tumulus (artificial hills covering dolmens or chambers).