Because of the concentration of statue-menhirs this is unarguably one of the major sites of Corsican Prehistory. Filitosa offers an incomparable collection of megalithic monuments, real sculptures most often in anthropomorphic (human) form, which bear witness to the great civilisations which flourished on the island before our era, and which evoke still mysterious religious rites.

Questions remain about the significance of the menhirs and statue-menhirs. Were the first Neolithic monoliths phallic symbols erected by peasants in the hope of fertilising the earth? Or were they funeral monuments representing the Shardane warrior chiefs, shady figures seen overwhelmed in images engraved on the Medinet-Abu temple in Egypt?

The stonemasons, the megalithic sculptors have made this place the greatest centre of statuary art in Corsica and one of the most important in the Mediterranean. Filitosa holds half of all the arms-bearing statue-menhirs counted in Corsica, and close to a third of Corsican statues.

Plenty of mystery has always surrounded these creations. For the archaeologist Roger Grosjean, the statue-menhirs represented the enemy chiefs killed in battle. The adversaries are the Torréens, torre builders, who would have come by sea, landing on Corsica in the XVIIth century BC. As for the armed figures on the statue-menhirs, Roger Grosjean identified them as the Shardanes (Ť Sea People ť) who even attacked the Egypt of the Pharaohs between the XIVth and XIIth centuries BC. The megalithic people would immortalise the enemy warriors’ strength in stone, so that it could never again manifest itself.

Incidentally, the artists took trouble with the details. The enemy is shown with a hemispherical helmet with an emphasised nape-cover. The collarbones and shoulder blades are protected by padding. The long swords are worn on the chest, hung from a shoulder strap. The dagger is attached crosswise to a belt holding a loincloth. The Torréens passion when they took possession of Filitosa, is understandable. They systematically destroyed their image by smashing the statue-menhirs. The statues broken in this way went on to be used in the construction of their Ťreligious ť monuments.

Other interpretations can be imagined. The swords and daggers are the trappings of the brave warrior chief, according to oral tradition; the tradition of the “Paladin”, Corsican horseman protecting the people against looters and arbitrary attack. These statues were painted black, adorned with various ceremonial symbols.

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