Archaeological sites France

Located at the exit of Auneau, direction Orsonville. The site was discovered by chance by hunters in 1978 who introduced a skeleton. From there, the excavation site began to reveal a human occupation from 9 000 to 2 500 BC. Workshops for the exploitation of the Fontainebleau sandstone, the housing remains and necropolis of the Mesolithic in Chasséen live on a plot of 1 ha.

On the megalithic site, three dolmens and two menhirs remind us that the site was the necropolis of the first inhabitants of the valley. If you have the soul of an archaeologist, you can register for the excavations that are taking place in the summer, contact Dominique Jagu.

It stretches over 50 ha and dates back to the Gallo era. Excavations have revealed the existence of habitat buildings, public buildings such as temples and a thermal sector. Long routes are identified as that from Lyon to Poitiers.

Below the village, the dolmen of Roche Cubertelle crossed the ages. Real mégalithe, dated the third millennium before Jesus Christ, he testifies to the ancient occupation of what will become the territory of the Ségusiaves before the arrival of the Celts.

This exceptional site was discovered in 1989 during an aerial survey. Gallo-Roman villas are usually farm farms. It dates from the 1 st century of our age, extending over 2,5 hectares and constitutes the largest archaeological site of this category to the west of France! This opulent villa was actually a secondary residence. Typically it includes a dedicated part of the farm, the "pars pars", the other in the house, called "pars". This villa consists of beautiful thermal baths composed of warm, warm and cold rooms, and one can discover the remains of the refined decoration based on coloured lines forming decorative rectangles and the friezes of plants. You can also admire the residential rooms whose walls are decorated with painting and marble in the Pyrenees, laid bare by excavations organised every year during the summer since its discovery. You will have the choice of a free visit all year round, allowing you to study with interpretive panels, or to enjoy a guided tour in season, or by appointment all year round.

An exceptional archaeological site. The oldest iron mine of the Pyrenees in the Basque Country, in Saint-Martin-d'Arrossa, is worth discovering. A remarkable cultural site, where its origins are inscribed for two millennia with the powerful vein of siderite of Larda and exploited with the first mines throughout the Renaissance and the modern era. Until the last period of activity, 250,000 tons of ore were extracted. The year 1914 marks the end of the exploitation. Today, 2 hiking trails allow you to discover this unique site.

Soon you will be able to access the archaeological excavations of Cestres woods. Since 2003, a small hamlet has been updated, consisting of two farms, fenced gardens and a bread oven and a large building. According to archival documents, this hamlet was reportedly deserted in 1417. A beautiful walk in the woods of Cestres and in the history of the Abbey of Saint-Seine. Indeed, a archéogéographique analysis of the site is under way to propose a revival of the life of the time considered.

For nearly 20 years and until the 2000 s, the surroundings of Yermenonville and Saint-Piat were the scene of intense excavation activity. Archaeologist Dominique Jagu put several megaliths on a daily basis. Among them, the dolmen of the Pierre-Frit is still visible and is large and long on the edge of the road between Yermenonville and Mévoisins. A little further, the Changé de Change, at Saint-Piat, gave information about how to live and the funeral rites of the first inhabitants of the Beauce.

Since 2000, it is there, overlooking the road of its impressive scale. The Menhir de was built at the request of the mayor of the commune who wanted to pay tribute to the first farmers in Beauce. According to traditional methods, with the help of the inhabitants of the commune, the stone is home to the names of all inhabitants and objects of modern daily life. This initiative gave rise to a small book, about pages, entitled "The new Menhir De."