Research

The vast majority of the material unearthed during excavations is ceramic, but it is often difficult to assign a definite provenance to a piece of pottery, except in the relatively rare cases where the production workshops are known. Faced with these uncertainties, archaeologists often call on the help of archaeometers to go beyond visual observations. The C3X project aims to produce 10 chemical calibration kits for ceramics of various origins, measured using portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (pXRF). This project is rooted in the pXRF user network (IRN-CNRS pXRFCUN project). Each of these kits will comprise 15 ceramics in the form of fusion discs (beads), accompanied by the corresponding analytical results and statistics. These results will be obtained using conventional methods (ICP-MS & OES, laboratory XRF) and pXRF. Each kit user will then be able to refer to these values to inter-calibrate his or her own instrument, so that results obtained in the various network partner laboratories will be comparable. The kits will be accompanied by a guide describing the protocols used and the ceramics selected. C3X will also be used to produce educational documents for archaeologists and archaeometers, notably as part of the Céramopôle and A*MIDEX TRIADS projects.

The aim of this project is to set up an Internationally recognized research network on the construction of local pantheons in Greek religion, focusing on three well-documented sites: Argos, Delos and Thasos. Our approach to this already richly bibliographed subject aims to understand how polytheism worked in practice, basing our analysis on both all available local sources and the representations given of it in literature. The perspective is therefore fundamentally multi-disciplinary, both in terms of the diversity of sources and the disciplines called upon to deal with them, as reflected by the project sponsors (archaeology, history, classics).

A better understanding of how cults functioned on a local scale, the distribution of functions by divinity and changes over time will shed light on the ways in which cults and their representation were structured in relation to the expression of political and social communities.

The strong institutional partnerships on which we are relying and the contacts we have already established with specialists in these issues will enable this project to be implemented within the allotted 18-month timeframe.

Partner(s):

• French School of Athens
• Swedish Institute at Athens

Based on the case of the Orange theater, we propose to develop non-destructive techniques for identifying the quarries that were the source of ancient building materials, such as in-situ chemical analysis and physical measurements on the building and in the quarries, and also to consider ways of locating ancient quarries in a context where human activity and urban planning have most likely caused them to disappear. In addition to the application of earth science methods, we'll be looking at the economics of the construction site.

Partner(s):

• Interdisciplinary Center for Heritage Conservation and Restoration (CICRP - Marseille)
• Study Group on Geomaterials and Anthropized Environments (GEGENAA - Reims)

This project combines petrography, geochemistry, dendrology and archaeology, with the aim of reconstructing the last route taken by the Paržine-Ilovik sailing ship. The ballast will be studied and sampled in situ, then analyzed in the laboratory. The results will be compared with those obtained from petrographic analysis of the amphorae and dendrological analysis of the hull wood, log loading and dunnage.

During the restitution phase, the positioning of the ballast and the evaluation of the volume occupied in the hold will enable us to complete the hydrostatic study of the ship and propose hypotheses as to its trim before sinking.

Partner(s):

• Università degli Studi di Genova

The aim of this Research project is to find the best parameters for using 3D microtomography on different parts of the skeleton of two small fish species. The production of 3D images of each skeletal element will enable interactive exploration in an osteological repository dedicated to fish. The technique used offers image resolution fine enough to allow easy reading of fish age and season of capture.

Excavation of the cemetery of the medieval abbey of Saint-Pierre de l'Almanarre (Hyères) has revealed several vaults built between 1220 and the last decades of the 14th century. We propose a global study of this particular type of burial, including an architectural approach and 3D photogrammetry in the field, the use of excavation archives for vaults excavated in the past, and an exhaustive anthropological study of the individuals.

Trial cosmogenic nuclide pair dating (10Be+26Al) of the archaeo-paleontological sequence from Lunel-Viel cave no. 1, a site dated to the 2nd half of the Middle Pleistocene by faunal fossil remains (relative age). Chronological precision is essential to better understand the fossil fill, refine comparisons with West European sites and better define and compare human activities (socio-economic sense and technology of the ante-Neanderthals) in this cave.

The archaeological site of Tipasa (Algeria), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a major site in the western Mediterranean. This project involves work on a monument in the urban center of the ancient city, the "Thermes du Centre", excavated in 1915 and again in the 1950s. This building, which has not yet been the subject of a detailed study or publication, raises a number of chronological, architectural, town-planning and heritage-related questions. The first step will be to collect and process the archives (digitization, indexing) held at the CCJ, which are essential to understanding the dossier. Secondly, the architectural study and the study of the furniture in the field should lead to an initial synthesis. This work is the first stage of a larger project, and will subsequently enable us to develop other themes and issues concerning this sector, culminating in a proposal for consolidation and enhancement within the framework of CoPaM (B. Sabeg), another project partner. Finally, Training will play a central role in this project.

Partner(s):

• Center national de recherche en archéologie (CNRA - Algeria)
• Office national de gestion et d'exploitation des biens culturels protégés (OGEBC - Algeria)
• University of Tipaza (Algeria)
• Association Co-développer le patrimoine mondial en Méditerranée (CoPaM - Arles)

The project is part of the Submerged Attica maritime archaeological research program (2019-2023). It is characterized by its interdisciplinarity, the aim being to document and study a series of submerged port cities in southern Attica, and in particular in the Lavreotic region, the silver mining area of classical Athens.

The project has three main objectives:

• Interdisciplinary research in underwater geoarchaeology directly associated with training students in maritime archaeology and coastal geoarchaeology;
• Innovative - and even experimental - techniques and methods for data acquisition on shallow submerged sites;
• The valorization of the site - now heavily urbanized - with new approaches being developed for underwater and coastal archaeology in the Mediterranean and Internationally, especially the development of the notion of coastal geoheritage.

Partner(s):

• Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities (Ministry of Culture - Greece)
• National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece)
• National Technical University of Athens (Greece)

This project, which aims to restore both the Roman port of Poreč in Istria (Croatia) and a type of boat sewn in the local tradition, is based on a strong Franco-Croatian partnership. Its objectives are to:

• to study the topography of the port in relation to the dynamics of occupation of the town and territory ;
• reconstruct relative variations in sea level, shoreline modifications and the impact of anthropization (various forms of pollution);
• reconstruct the local and regional paleoenvironment and natural resources;
• to compare the architectural unit represented by the Poreč wreck with six other Istrian and Dalmatian wrecks, from the point of view of architecture, dendrology and the study of protective pitch, in order to characterize a "type" representative of Adriatic shipbuilding traditions of the Roman period and carry out a complete 3D restitution study (structure, form, hydrostatics).

These studies will call on the combined skills and methods of history, archaeology, topography, geography, dendrology and dendrochronology, and palynology. The project also includes a training component.

Partner(s):

• Territorial Museum of Poreč (Croatia)
• Archaeological Museum of Istria (Croatia)
• University of Zagreb (Croatia)
• Department for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia, Pula
• Laboratoire Travaux et recherches archéologiques sur les cultures, les espaces et les sociétés (TRACES - Toulouse, France)