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Acropolis Roquepertuse is an ancient
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...
religious center. It is located near the city of Velaux, north of
Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
16 miles west of
Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence, or simply Aix, is a List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, city and Communes of France, commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is the Subprefectures in France, s ...
, in the
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (commonly shortened to PACA), also known as Région Sud, is one of the eighteen Regions of France, administrative regions of France, located at the far southeastern point of the Metropolitan France, mainland. The main P ...
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
of southern France. The site was first recorded in the
Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( ; , ; ; "the Mouths of the Rhône") is a Departments of France, department in southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var (department), Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the sout ...
civil statistics in 1824 when a partially buried statue of a cross-legged warrior was discovered in the garden of the parish priest. The structure was destroyed by the Romans in 124 BC and re-discovered in 1860 when a partially uncovered statue was fully excavated. Most of the excavations were done in 1923 by Henri de Gérin-Ricard.


Excavations

The accidental discovery of the first sculptures in the 19th century triggered the first excavation of the site by Count . A series of excavations then took place over the next ten years, from 1917 to 1927, and brought to light structures identified as a sanctuary attributed to the Celto-
Ligures The Ligures or Ligurians were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day Northern Italy, north-western Italy, is named. Because of the strong Celts, Celtic influences on their language and culture, they were also known in anti ...
, initially dated to just before the Roman conquest. Officially, the relics have now been dated to the 3rd century BC, based on
Celt The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...
ic expansion into the area at the time. However, the clothing and gestures of certain statues found at the site suggest that they date from the 5th or 6th century BC. These statues are distinguished by their cross-legged seated position. A platform of 50 m by 22 m paved with flat stones including a couple of reused headstones, was discovered, divided in the middle by a staircase made of large blocks of stone. Stone walls to the left and to the right of the stairs formed a terrace, probably one of several which the complex originally had. On the platform was what has variously been called a portal, door frame, and portico with pillars, carved of limestone. Its columns have cavities in which human stone masks, and human skulls, had been placed. Its lintel was carved with the heads of four horses, and additional decoration in paint. At the top of the lintel was a limestone statue of a bird of 60 cm by 60 cm which has been called a goose, but is now thought more likely to depict a raptor. A two-faced androgynous sculpture of limestone (0.2 m high and 30 cm long) was also found, as well as two statues of figure sitting cross-legged(0.62 m high). The first interpretation of archaeologists was that this was a secluded sanctuary. The latest findings from various multidisciplinary studies suggest that it was an agglomeration of about 0.5 hectares with a sanctuary to the north, as well as a bulwark for protection. The site is important in part because it provides evidence for the Celtic head cult described in Greek and Roman accounts. The site is near another Celtic-Roman site at Entremont, which had similar relief sculpture of severed human and horse heads, as well as skull niches carved into pillars. Nearby archaeological sites include several
oppida An ''oppidum'' (: ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age Europe, Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celts, Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread acros ...
from approximately the same period. Roquepertuse was declared a
monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...
, or protected historical site, in 1967. Roquepertuse had no domicile available for worshippers and has been used as a sanctuary where only priests may have lived permanently.


References


Bibliography

* ''Le sanctuaire préromain de Roquepertuse à Velaux'', by Henri de Gérin-Ricard (
Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
, 1929) * ''Le sanctuaire préromain de Roquepertuse à Velaux (Bouches-du-Rhône) (The Pre-Roman Sanctuary of Roquepertuse in Velaux (Bouches-du-Rhône)'', Henri de Gérin-Ricard Marseille, Société de statistique d'histoire et d'archéologie de Marseille et de Provence, 1927 * Brigitte Lescure, 'Roquepertuse", in ''Voyage en Massalie: 100 ans d'archéologie en Gaule du Sud (Travel to Massalia: 100 Years of Archaeology in South Gaul)'', Marseille, Musées de Marseille/Édisud, 1990 (ISBN 2-85744-496-6), p. 165-171 * ''L'art primitif méditerranéen de la vallée du Rhone'' (Primitive Mediterranean Art of the Rhone Valley), by (1955) * ''Art et dieux de la Gaule (Art and Gods of Gaul)'', by Fernand Benoit (1969) ''(in English)'' * "The Celtic Realms: The History and the Culture of the Celtic Peoples from Pre-History to the Norman Invasion", by Myles Dillon & Nora Chadwick (1967), pages 294-297.


External links

* In-depth description and pictures of findings: "Roquepertuse et les celto-ligures" on the Velaux city websit

* Description:
Celtic Culture: a historical encyclopedia By John T. Koch
* Current location of findings: Musée d'archéologie méditerranéenne in Marseille :fr:Musée d'archéologie méditerranéenne#Roquepertuse * Current reconstruction of placement in museum: http://pcturismo.liberta.it/asp/Dettaglio.asp?IDGruppo=46250&ID=8927 * Other possible reconstructions of the poses of the seated figures, i.e. holding skulls, holding weapons

* A similarly seated figure sculpture is shown on this Spanish webpage on Gauls and Celts, without identification of its origin elts of the Gallic Lands , http://webs.advance.com.ar/cernunnosgb/problema.htm {{Coord, 43.5328, 5.2715, region:FR-U_type:city, display=title Ancient Celtic religion Celtic archaeological sites Buildings and structures in Bouches-du-Rhône History of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Celtic art Salyes