Father Henri Gillard. Remarkable trees The forest of Paimpont contains several special trees. One of them is the (the beech of the Ponthus), being associated with the tale of Ponthus and Sidonia. The most famous is an old oak about 1,000 years old and more than 9 meters in circumference: the (the oak of Guillotin), located between Concoret and Tréhorenteuc. According to a local legend, a refractory priest named Pierre-Paul Guillotin took refuge there during the French Revolution, continued to administer sacraments and blessings in the region, and wrote a valuable journal of revolutionary events. Fontaine de Barenton The Fountain of Barenton (also known as Berenton, Belenton, or Balenton) is located west of the forest, near the hamlet of Folle-Pensée, and is quite difficult to access. As quoted in medieval literature, and retained to this day, this fountain occasionally has rosaries of bubbles rise to its surface. The site first become associated with the legendary fountain of Brocéliande by Auguste Brizeux in 1836. A local custom made young men and women visit the fountain in search of marriage. It is here that Ywain, as described by Chrétien de Troyes in Yvain, the Knight of the Lion, challenged the Black Knight, guardian of the fountain. According to a later legend, this is also where Merlin met Viviane, and the water of this fountain had the power to cure mental illnesses. References in popular culture In René Barjavel's 1984 Arthurian novel L'Enchanteur, the stone hill above the is actually Morgan's castle which, cursed by the Devil (Merlin's father), "has become a rock, from the top of which we have a bird's eye view of the wild valley. Tourists come, Japanese, Germans especially, some French too. They do not suspect that under their feet still rages the sister of King Arthur, imprisoned in a huge rock." The forest is the setting of the 2002 horror film Brocéliande. See also List of forests in France Locations associated with Arthurian legend References External links Brocéliande | Brittany Tourism Tourist Office of Brocéliande, Paimpont Brocéliande.guide Destination Brocéliande (in French) Encyclopédie de Brocéliande Forests of France Geography of Brittany Geography of Ille-et-Vilaine Geography of Morbihan Locations associated with Arthurian legend Tourist attractions in Ille-et-Vilaine Tourist attractions in Morbihan Prince Philippe, Count of Paris