France: Mysterious horseshoe-shaped monument discovered

Do you know?
22.04.2024 France Dijon   116
France: Mysterious horseshoe-shaped monument discovered

A mysterious prehistoric site has been discovered in what experts are calling an "unprecedented" find. If reports are to be believed, the ancient structure was discovered during excavations carried out by the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) in the commune of Marlien in eastern France. approximately nine miles southeast of Dijon.


Excavations at this The site has revealed a series of human settlements spanning millennia, from the Neolithic era to the Iron Age. According to an INRAP press release, the oldest evidence of habitation at the site is a mysterious monument consisting of three interconnected enclosures.


At the center of the monument is a circular enclosure approximately 36 feet in diameter. Extending near the north of the center circle is a horseshoe-shaped fence approximately 26 feet long. To the south, on the opposite side, protrudes an almost square enclosure with rounded corners.


INRAP indicates that all three enclosures appear to be modern, although numerous uncertainties remain regarding the purpose, nature and age of the structure.


This type of monument is unlike anything seen before, and comparisons are not possible at this time, INRAP said in a press release.


Although the exact age of the structure remains elusive, the only artifacts associated with it, mostly flint objects, hint at a Neolithic origin, corresponding to the Neolithic period in France, which began around the 6th millennium BC.


It is believed that some of These artifacts are associated with the Bell Beaker culture, which arose about 4,500 years ago, according to Archeology Magazine. In addition, archaeologists found traces of iron oxide on one of the armbands, likely consistent with pyrite, an essential element for igniting fire.


Although these items strongly suggest a burial site, confirmation of this hypothesis has yet to be confirmed received. Continued analysis of the dagger's copper alloy may provide clues to its origins and shed light on the trade dynamics of the period.


Other structures, including wells, have also been discovered at the site Bronze Age and a necropolis with five circular enclosures containing burial remains and a funeral pyre.

Source: timesofindia

Read also: Exploring Georgia by Car: The Most Flexible Way to Experience the Country