Limeuil (prehistoric site)

The Upper Palaeolithic archaeological site of Limeuil in the French department of Dordogne has become known through numerous engraved stone slabs from the Magdalenian.

Geopgraphie, Geology and Location Description

The archaeological site of Limeuil located in the middle of the medieval village of Limeuil, at the confluence of the Vézère and Dordogne. The hunters of the late Upper Paleolithic had settled here below a small estuary dominant limestone massif from lying flat Coniacian.

The deposit extends approximately 30 meters along a slope below two Kallkausbisse. This is therefore a convenient outdoor place of settlement, then later also the immediate vicinity of some overhanging rocks that involved.

History of Research

The level of archaeological layer was randomly digging during earthworks at the bakery by Léo Bélanger. Thereupon J. Bouyssonie, a prehistorians from Brive, tasked with digging by the then Ministry of Science, which he carried out 1909-1913. This work is designed to be very difficult because the existing building had to be respected.

Stratigraphy

The Fund layer comes from the Magdalenian VI.

Finds

The stone artifacts are dominated by burins, including some parrot beaks (French burins bec -de- perroquet ). Among the bone tools were zweirangige harpoons. Characteristic of the former era were engravings that were attached to bone and reindeer horn. Among the works of art such as a pierced bar that was decorated with reindeer and fish. In other pieces, there were bison, wild horses and a pretty rare feature even a fox.

The engravings are as comparable works from the cave of Teyjat of very fine lines and almost photographically acting true to nature. As in Teyjat prevail in Limeuil the pictures of deer and reindeer clearly before (50 % of the images ), followed by wild horses ( 30% ), aurochs, bison and ibex. Also, two bears and a fox occur.

Importance

The originality Limeuils lies in the almost two hundred engraved limestone slabs of different sizes. J. Bouyssonie has published over a hundred of them. The sheer number of these plates can be loud André Leroi - Gourhan possibly the presence of a sacred precinct, a kind of " artist's workshop ", or even a kind of " academy" close.

For the first time the earth was shown in Limeuil between the extremities of the animals shown with a thick solid line.

Age

The deposit of Limeuil comes from the Magdalenian VI, it has therefore been inhabited approximately 12,000 years ago BP.