A Huge Site Dated To Roman-Era Unearthed In Reims (Marne), France

Conny Waters - AncientPages.com - A team of archaeologists from INRAP (France's National Institute for Preventive Archaeology) excavating in the Sernam/ Boulingrin district have unearthed a vast Roman-era complex dated to the 2nd and 3rd  century AD.

Archaeologists from INRAP (France's National Institute for Preventive Archaeology) have unearthed a vast Roman-era complex in Reims. dated to the 2nd and 3rd  century AD.

Pilettes of the first hypocaust (underfloor heating system) discovered in Reims (Marne) in 2023. An ancient monumental site from the 2nd- 3rd centuries was unearthed there. Image credit: Sylvain Lejeune, Inrap

Its location is only a hundred meters from the Porte de Mars, a Gallo-Roman honorary arch in Reims (France), the ancient Durocortorum. This arch is the largest arch preserved in the Roman world.

The site consists mainly of walls of raw earth tiles under study. It has two extensive porticoed galleries of 20 meters on each side, forming a "U" in the plan. These galleries surround two large rectangular masonry blocks in an open space, most likely a garden. One of the two, equipped with two pressurized water pipes, corresponds to a basin or a fountain.

Just over twenty rooms are organized around these two galleries. Some are vast corridors, and others are living rooms with compacted chalk floors and are equipped with central fireplaces. Nine rooms with very elaborate constructions probably correspond to a thermal space of ancient baths.

Five of them, very large, have an underfloor heating system (hypocaust).

Zenithal photo of the entire excavation in progress in the Sernam/Boulinrin district brought to light in Reims (Marne), in 2023. An ancient monumental site from the 2nd-3rd centuries was discovered there.

Additionally, the team found many fragments of painted plaster decorated with bunches of grapes that have been discovered and testify to a relatively comfortable habitat.

Some pigments used, including a blue similar to "Egyptian blue," are rare. This discovery characterizes a straightforward set. A large number of rooms, their organization, the richness of the decorations, the two extensive galleries, the hydraulic network, and the archaeological elements discovered (ceramics, architectural blocks, copper alloy tableware, etc.) allow two possible interpretations.

INRAP's archaeologists say that "the relics could be the domus (house) of a wealthy individual or a spa complex, possibly open to the public, given the monumentality…"

This complex, inside the enclosure of the city of the High Empire (3rd century) and in the immediate vicinity of the monumental ancient gate of Mars dating from the same period, is very privileged. Further north, several large domus were unearthed during archaeological excavations.

In the centre, foundation of an ancient basin surrounded by remains of its porticoed gallery, discovered in Reims (Marne), in 2023. Credit: INRAP

Around the end of the 3rd or beginning of the 4th century, the area was abandoned, and all destroyed buildings became used as recycled material for later structures.

It is possible that this dismantling is linked to the construction of the late wall of Reims built from the beginning of the 4th century. Many layers of earth that seal the ancient remains have been found by archaeologists and seem to correspond to the place's recultivation.

This part of the city was reoccupied at the end of the 18th century, as the northern cemetery of Reims was constructed in 1796.

Before the Roman conquest of northern Gaul, Reims had served as the Remi tribe's capital, founded circa 80 BC. The Remi, were Belgic people who became allies of Caesar during the Gallic wars (58-51 BC).

In the course of Julius Caesar's conquest of Gaul (58–51 BC), the Remi allied themselves with the Romans, and by their fidelity throughout the various Gallic insurrections secured the special favor of the imperial power.

At its height in Roman times, the city had a population in the range of 30,000–50,000 or even up to 100,000. Reims was first called Durocortorum in Latin, which is hypothesized to derive from a Gaulish name"Door of Cortoro". The city later took its name from the Remi tribe.

Original story

Written by Conny Waters - AncientPages.com Staff Writer