Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy
Monument
Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy, located in Sévrier (Département 74), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Sévrier, Département 74, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 45.8604, 6.1556
- Mérimée Reference
- PA74000016
Immersed in the crystal-clear waters of Lake Annecy, this Bronze Age palaeolithic site still bears silent witness to a lakeside civilisation that disappeared three thousand years ago.
History
At the bottom of Lake Annecy, just a stone's throw from the commune of Sévrier, lies a sunken world of rare archaeological density: the Crêt-de-Chatillon site, an exceptional vestige of the lakeside towns that once dotted the shores of the great Alpine lakes. Classified as a Historic Monument in 2011, this underwater site belongs to the family of "palafittes" - villages on stilts whose collective memory has long nourished the prehistoric imagination - and is one of the most precious testimonies to regional prehistory. What makes this site truly unique is its dual temporal strata. Test pits and explorations carried out since 1856 have revealed intense human occupation concentrated around the 15th century and between the 11th and 9th centuries BC, two major phases of the Final Bronze Age. The wooden piles driven into the lake silt, preserved by the anaerobiosis of the depths, constitute an unparalleled organic archive: they provide dendrochronologists and archaeobotanists with invaluable information about the wood used, construction techniques and even the climatic variations of the period. The experience of the site is first and foremost that of diving - literally and figuratively. Archaeological divers and enlightened amateurs who venture underwater discover an underwater landscape where alignments of piles emerge from the sediment like the columns of a forgotten temple. The legendary transparency of Lake Annecy's waters provides remarkable visibility in fine weather, making this one of the most photogenic heritage diving sites in France. The setting is even more stunning: Lake Annecy, surrounded by the Savoyard Pre-Alps, is bathed in light of rare Alpine purity. From the shore at Sévrier, you can see the Tournette mountain range and the Semnoz mountain range, and there's nothing to suggest the presence of these wooden ghosts that have survived three millennia beneath the shimmering surface. A meditation on the fragility and permanence of human traces.
Architecture
Crêt-de-Chatillon belongs to the category of palafittes or "lakeside villages on stilts", a form of settlement characteristic of the prehistoric populations of the Alpine arc. The spatial organisation of the site, as revealed by the surveys, is based on a network of vertical wooden piles - mainly oak, ash or alder, depending on local availability - driven into the lake sediment at shallow depths. These piles, some of which are several metres long, formed the foundations of the raised platforms on which the dwellings were built. The dwellings themselves were built using a combination of techniques: wooden frames, walls of cob (a mixture of clay and vegetable matter), and roofs probably of thatch or bark. No elevated remains have survived, but the constructional logic is well known from comparisons with dozens of similar sites excavated in Switzerland, Austria and northern Italy. The discovery of a potter's kiln in situ suggests the existence of differentiated functional zones within the village, with areas dedicated to craft production distinct from residential areas. Underwater, what remains visible - and constitutes the very essence of the site - are the piles themselves, preserved in an often remarkable condition thanks to the anoxia of the lake sediments. By arranging them in rows or clusters, archaeologists can reconstruct the overall layout of the structures. The sub-lake site covers an area estimated at several hectares, testifying to a settlement of significant size for its time.
Related Figures
Communautés de l'Âge du Bronze final (XVe s. av. J.-C.) — premiers habitants identifiés du siteCommunautés de l'Âge du Bronze final (XIe-IXe s. av. J.-C.) — second temps fort d'occupation lacustreExplorateurs anonymes de 1856 — premiers fouilleurs modernes du gisement subaquatiqueFerdinand Keller — archéologue suisse dont les travaux sur les palafittes alpins ont inspiré les recherches sur le lac d'AnnecyArchéologues de la DRAC Rhône-Alpes — responsables des sondages méthodiques du XXe siècle et du dossier de classement MH
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy located?
Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy is located in Sévrier, Département 74 department, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, France.
When was Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy built?
Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy open to visitors?
Site archéologique du Crêt-de-Chatillon immergé dans le lac d'Annecy is currently closed to visitors.