Gisement de la Rochette
MonumentHidden Treasure
Gisement de la Rochette, located in Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère (Dordogne), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère, Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 44.9962, 1.0701
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00082861
At the edges of the Vézère valley, the deposit of la Rochette has been yielding exceptional Palaeolithic remains since the 19th century, silent witnesses to tens of millennia of human occupation in Périgord.
History
Nestling in the commune of Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère, in the heart of what prehistorians call the "prehistory capital of the world", the Rochette site is one of the oldest protected archaeological sites in France. Classified as a Historic Monument as early as 1912, it bears witness to the early interest shown by the scientific authorities in this part of the Vézère valley, which much later became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This open-air and rock shelter site is part of a remarkably coherent geological and landscape environment: the limestone cliffs overlooking the Vézère provided prehistoric man with natural shelters, protective overhangs and walls conducive to symbolic expression. La Rochette is no exception to this immemorial logic, and its stratigraphic deposits reveal levels of occupation ranging from the Middle Palaeolithic to the Upper Palaeolithic, and even beyond. Visible from the path along the river, the site offers the attentive visitor a direct view of the landscape as it was known to the Magdalenian and Mousterian populations. Far from the spectacular staging of an ornate cave, La Rochette invites a more discreet but just as striking form of contemplation: that of a place where geological time and human time are silently superimposed. The immediate natural setting, bathed in the golden light of the Périgord Noir, makes this visit an experience in itself. Fans of prehistory, photographers in search of low-lying light on the cliffs and families keen to understand the origins of European mankind will find inexhaustible material here.
Architecture
The Rochette site belongs to the category of rock shelters, a characteristic geological formation of the Périgord Noir. These shelters are the result of differential erosion of Upper Cretaceous limestone cliffs: seepage water and temperature variations have carved out natural overhangs at the foot of the walls, offering prehistoric occupants protection from the elements without the need for artificial construction. The surrounding rock, a fine-grained limestone of an ochre to white hue, has a stratigraphy that is legible to the naked eye, with the different sedimentary layers superimposed like the pages of a geological book. The morphology of the site probably combines a settlement area concentrated under the rock overhang and a more open area of activity in front of the shelter, a classic configuration for Palaeolithic camps on the Vézère. The archaeological deposits, some of which are several metres thick, show that occupations were repeated over very long periods. The shelters chosen by prehistoric man probably faced south or south-west, optimising sunlight and protection from the prevailing northerly winds. The immediate landscape itself is an architectural feature of this site: the nearby Vézère provided water and game, while the local flint outcrops provided the raw material needed to carve tools. There are no surviving built structures here, as the cliff itself, shaped by the millennia and the people who lived there, is the main part of the built heritage.
Related Figures
Édouard Lartet — géologue et paléontologue, pionnier de la préhistoire périgourdine au XIXe siècleHenry Christy — ethnologue et banquier britannique, co-explorateur des sites de la Vézère avec LartetGabriel de Mortillet — préhistorien français ayant élaboré la classification des cultures paléolithiques dans laquelle s'inscrit la RochetteDenis Peyrony — instituteur et préhistorien des Eyzies, infatigable fouilleur des sites de la Vézère au début du XXe siècleLouis Capitan — médecin et préhistorien, actif dans la protection et l'étude des sites périgourdins à l'époque du classement de 1912
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Gisement de la Rochette located?
Gisement de la Rochette is located in Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère, Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
Is Gisement de la Rochette open to visitors?
Gisement de la Rochette is currently closed to visitors.
