How many stones in the pathway?
The number of stones that form the path of the labyrinth provides a final numerical puzzle. Often quoted as exactly 270 or 272, and considered by many as symbolic of the number of days of human gestation (2), the exact number is in fact difficult to determine. Several of the original stones have clearly broken since they were originally laid in place and now appear to be two slabs instead of one. Those with ragged, interlocking cracks are easy to spot; others with clean breaks are more difficult. There are also a few short slabs that look suspiciously like ‘patches’ inserted to replace damaged portions of pathway. Depending on how you count, it is possible to arrive at a number anywhere between around 268 and 274. Either way, the use of the word ‘exactly’ in discussion of this, or practically any other other aspect of the Chartres labyrinth, should be treated with caution, as labyrinths tend not to conform to exactitudes.
