Site gallo-romain du Haut-Bécherel - Temple de Mars
MonumentHidden Treasure
Site gallo-romain du Haut-Bécherel - Temple de Mars, located in Corseul (Département 22), is a historic monument. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Location
- Corseul, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.4717, -2.1471
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089068
An exceptional remnant of the ancient city of the Coriosolites, the Temple of Mars at Haut-Bécherel is the largest Gallo-Roman sanctuary in Brittany: an octagonal cella rising from the fields, a striking testament to a fanum covering one hectare.
History
In the heart of the peaceful fields of the Corseul region, a stone tower rises up with unsettling majesty: it's the cella of the Temple of Mars at Haut-Bécherel, the best-preserved vestige of what was once the most imposing Gallo-Roman sanctuary in ancient Brittany. Classified as a historic monument in 1840 - one of the first in France - this extraordinary archaeological site fascinates as much by its proportions as by the enigma it continues to pose for archaeologists. What immediately strikes visitors is the almost incongruous presence of this Roman masonry in the middle of an ordinary Breton landscape. The octagonal tower, several metres high, rises up from its Roman masonry facings with a straightness that the centuries have only partially altered. Around it, the vegetation and meadows conceal the foundations of a cult complex that stretched for almost 90 metres by 80 metres - an area comparable to the great sanctuaries of Roman Gaul. The visit is both contemplative and archaeological. You wander around an open-air site where your imagination has to fill in what the stone hasn't preserved: the porticoed gallery that enclosed the courtyard on three sides, the altars, the ex-voto offerings, the crowds of pilgrims and merchants who kept this place of worship alive for over two centuries. Educational panels show the layout of the sanctuary as it was drawn up in 1869 and confirmed by modern aerial surveys. The setting also offers a further curiosity: in the south-east corner of the site stands a 16th-century farmhouse, whose builders probably used Roman stone as a reuse quarry, thus unknowingly perpetuating the dialogue between the ages. This superimposition of temporalities gives Haut-Bécherel a rare depth, conducive to meditation as much as discovery.
Architecture
The sanctuary at Haut-Bécherel belongs to the category of Gallo-Roman fana, the centrally-planned temples typical of Roman Gaul, which combine a sacred interior building - the cella - with a courtyard surrounded by porticoes. But its size puts it in a class of its own: with a total area of around 90 metres by 80 metres, or more than a hectare, it has no equivalent in Brittany and rivals the largest known sanctuaries in Northern Gaul. The most remarkable and best-preserved feature is the octagonal cella - a rare and prestigious shape that sets this monument apart from the usually square or rectangular fana. This octagonal tower, whose walls made of local granite and schist still stand several metres high, was the heart of the sanctuary, housing the statue of the god Mars and accessible only to the priests. The quality of the workmanship - regular courses, lime mortar, carefully treated corners - bears witness to the work of architects and craftsmen who were masters of Roman construction techniques. Around this cella was a vast open courtyard, surrounded on three sides by a porticoed gallery, the foundations of which were found during excavations. This tripartite layout, typical of Gallo-Roman sanctuaries, delimited the sacred space, welcomed pilgrims and housed shops and ancillary services linked to religious activities. The complex was probably built using a combination of materials - stone masonry for the prestige features and timber framing for the galleries - in accordance with the practices of Upper Roman provincial architecture.
Related Figures
Les élites coriosolites romanisées du Ier siècle (commanditaires présumés du sanctuaire)Prosper Mérimée (inspecteur général des Monuments historiques, acteur du classement de 1840)Anatole de Barthélemy (archéologue du XIXe siècle, auteur des premières fouilles systématiques du site)Auguste Geslin de Bourgogne (érudit breton du XIXe siècle, contributeur à la connaissance des antiquités de Corseul)Les prêtres du culte de Mars (desservants du fanum entre le Ier et le IIIe siècle)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Site gallo-romain du Haut-Bécherel - Temple de Mars located?
Site gallo-romain du Haut-Bécherel - Temple de Mars is located in Corseul, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
Is Site gallo-romain du Haut-Bécherel - Temple de Mars open to visitors?
Site gallo-romain du Haut-Bécherel - Temple de Mars is currently closed to visitors.