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Les agglomérations dans le monde celtique et ses marges. Nouvelles approches et perspectives de recherche
In temperate Europe, the first cities appeared later than in the Mediterranean world. They developed in different economic and political contexts and according to their own dynamics. It was long thought that the oppida, fortified settlements on high ground, which emerged at the end of the 2nd century BC, represented the first towns in the Celtic (more precisely Latin) domain. But the discoveries of the last thirty years show that older urban forms preceded them. This is true of the vast unfortified settlements that emerged in the Celtic world in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, long ignored because of the modest archaeological traces they left behind. These agglomerations concentrated several major innovations: an unprecedented demographic growth; a large area of habitat (several tens of hectares) and the beginning of a rationalised organisation of space (public squares, sanctuaries, specialised districts, etc.); large-scale craft production; intense commercial and economic activities marked by the first appearance of money in trade.
This book gathers the proceedings of the first IRN (International Research Network) NEMESIS workshop held in Bordeaux (Musée d’Aquitaine) on 2 and 3 December 2021. It brings together several contributions from European researchers working on settlements in the Celtic world and its margins, from the Atlantic to the Black Sea. The aim is to compare this phenomenon, apparently specific to the Celtic domain, with the contemporary situation in other regions of the area studied (Iberian Peninsula, Dacia, Eurasia, etc.).
These Proceedings are particularly interested in the strategies that make it possible to apprehend these agglomerations on large surfaces. The papers concern past, present and future experiences, preferably including integrated approaches: LIDAR, archaeological surveys (geophysical, pedestrian, aerial), GIS, cartography, archaeological excavations, network reconstruction, paleoenvironmental studies, etc. This work allows us to lay the groundwork for a common reflection on the strategies, protocols and best practices to be implemented to approach a large site.
