The prehistoric site of Pincevent is on the commune of the Large-Parish, in the valley of the Seine downstream from Montereau-Fault-Yonne. It delivered the vestiges of a camping of hunters of reindeers Magdalénien S going back to approximately 12.300 years. Its discovery in 1964 then its Fouille under the direction of André Leroi-Gourhan allowed important progress in knowledge of Magdalénien but also with regard to the methods of the prehistoric Archéologie .

History of the discoveries

The site of Pincevent is in a Sablière exploited since 1926. As from 1956, fortuitous discoveries were carried out there, then excavations of rescue related to a cemetery of the 5th century. Gallo-Roman buildings , a cemetery Gallic, 10 to 11 hearths probably Neolithic S and the first hearths Magdalénien S were destroyed by the exploitation of the career between 1956 and 1964, in spite of the monitoring of voluntary researchers deprived of means of intervention.

One of these researchers, Isabelle Russet-red-Rath, was specialist in Paléoclimatologie and resided at the Large Parish. She alerted the team of A. Leroi-Gourhan, the Research center prehistoric and prehistoric of the University of Paris I , which intervened initially within the framework of excavations of rescue. Taking into account the interest and extent of the site, protection measures were taken then the ground was acquired by the State. The excavations could thus continue under better condition, until in 1985 pennies the direction of has. Leroi-Gourhan, then thereafter by its team.

Importance of the site

The site of Pincevent was occupied approximately 12.300 years ago, on several occasions, of the beginning of the summer at the beginning of the winter. The principal game driven out by its inhabitants was the Renne, but they consumed also fish and eggs.

The space organization of the vestiges lithic and osseous as well as the hearths were preserved in an exceptional way by fine silts of flood of the Seine. Their study made it possible to highlight circular surfaces of activities probably corresponding to the site of dwellings. It was thus proposed as assumption that the inhabitants lived in foldable tents covered with skins, close to the Tipi S of the North-Amerindians. The systematic realization of reassemblies of the blocks of flint, a reconstitution of the block of origin as if it were about a puzzle with three dimensions, allowed to highlight qualification levels different for the size from flint: certain tailors were tested, others were still in phase of training. The study of the bones of reindeer shows that the whole animals were brought back to the camping before being divided between the various dwellings.

Pincevent also played a big role in the development and the improvement of the methods of prehistoric Fouille S. Following work of G. Laplace and L. Méroc in the Pyrenees, A. Leroi-Gourhan developed and formalized to with it meticulous techniques of excavation by scourings but especially of the recordings systematic of all the objects, traces, macro and microstructures discovered with for objective precisely positioning them in a space in 3 dimensions.

With this method and starting from the analysis of ten thousands spalls, of fragments of wood or bones scattered on various horizons, A. Leroi-Gourhan and its team could reconstitute the habitat and the daily life of the magdaléniens which drove out the reindeer and fished on banks of the Seine, 9 to 10000 years before our era. This technique, sophisticated in Pincevent, was going to make school and applies since in many building sites of prehistoric excavations.

See too

Random links:

Quartettsatz (Franz Schubert) | Escou | Fantômas against Fantômas (film) | Kevi