Archaeologists Found 2,000 Years of History Under Notre-Dame Cathedral
My Extracts 2026-06-12 05:11:06
Context: Archaeologists have been conducting an excavation beneath the square just outside Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, which has yielded a wealth of historical secrets dating back 2,000 years. The excavation, dubbed "the dig of the century," is a rare opportunity for archaeologists to work on a project that will tangibly contribute to the history of Paris. The project was prompted by plans to transform the empty square into a shaded, tree-filled gathering place.
Key Facts
- The excavation began yielding secrets just 20 inches down, and 13 feet below the surface lies evidence of 2,000 years of continuous human habitation, according to Lucie Altenburg, a conservator with the Paris archeology unit.
- The site was once home to medieval dwellings and, before that, a Roman-era settlement, according to Hugo Cador, one of the project's archaeologists, who stated that human occupation here has been continuous since antiquity.
- Construction on Notre-Dame began in 1163 and was completed in the mid-14th century, when medieval homes whose cellars now reside just below the surface once stood.
- Beneath the cellars lie Merovingian and Carolingian grain pits dating from the sixth century to the tenth, which were discovered along with the remains of Roman habitation from the fourth and fifth centuries, highlighted by a coin bearing the image of Emperor Constantine, who ruled in the early 300s C.E.
- The coin helps archaeologists to date each layer precisely, according to Altenburg.
- One of the most fascinating discoveries came from the medieval latrines, where the team uncovered intact jugs, cups, and a candlestick, a rarity, according to archaeologist Calentine Breloux.
- The grime and feces had kept them protected for centuries, and among the finds were pottery shards bearing mysterious red writing on their inner surfaces that have so far stumped every expert who's examined them.
- Breloux called the discovery "astonishing."
- The team has also found physical evidence of the transition from Lutetia (the Roman-era city centered on the Seine's Left Bank) to the fortified medieval island, including a Roman doorstep that had been turned upside down, having apparently been repurposed to pave a road.
- The new square is intended to open in 2028, complete with 160 newly planted trees and a water feature designed to cool the area.
- Until then, the dig will keep going deeper, with the hope that the team will be able to go back in time even further than they've ever been before, according to Altenburg.