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Article · 1998

Les pirogues néolithiques de Paris-Bercy: traces de travail et techniques de façonnage

B. Arnold

Archaeonautica 14 73-78

An article in French on ten Neolithic oak dugouts from Paris-Bercy, concentrating on tool marks, hollowing by fire and shaping techniques.

Arnold studies ten oak dugouts found at the foot of three Neolithic settlements on the south bank of an old branch of the Seine at Paris-Bercy. Deformation and fragmentation prevent a study of the boats' forms until conservation and restoration are complete, so the article concentrates on manufacturing traces. Parallel rows of adze cuts mark the bottoms and oblique axe marks the sides, and Arnold reports estimated cut widths, carbonised surfaces, tenons, transverse reinforcements and a groove on dugout 3.

He interprets the carbonised traces as evidence for controlled hollowing by fire, worked with the adze on the bottoms and the axe on the sides, and concludes that the burning proceeded in successive layers of about a centimetre, with charcoal removed to continue. The oldest hulls are exceptionally thin, and he suggests they may have been lightened for portage between bodies of water rather than made to carry heavy loads.

The settlements belong to the Middle Neolithic, which the article dates to about 4500–3400 BCE, and the final settlement to about 3000–2600 BCE. Dugout 1 has a radiocarbon date of 5510±20 BP, and Arnold argues that fire hollowing was practised by the beginning of the Middle Neolithic, or possibly the end of the Early Neolithic.

What it records

  • Excavation of an old branch of the Seine at Paris-Bercy, south-east of the Bercy sports palace, in 1991–92 exposed three Neolithic settlements on the south bank.p. 73
  • Ten oak dugouts found at the foot of the Paris-Bercy settlements are associated with Neolithic material in secondary position.p. 73
  • Paris-Bercy dugouts 1–4 were discovered in 1991 and dugout elements 6–12 in 1992.p. 73
  • Paris-Bercy dugout 1, found in a similar cultural context, has a radiocarbon date of 5510±20 BP.p. 74
  • Arnold estimates that the dugouts were likely 6–8 m long and 0.80–1.00 m wide, possibly 1.20 m.p. 74
  • Arnold argues that prehistoric boatbuilders mastered hollowing by fire by the beginning of the Middle Neolithic, or possibly the end of the Early Neolithic.p. 75
  • Arnold suggests that the oldest, thin-hulled dugouts were probably lightened for portage and were not meant for heavy cargoes.p. 75

Where to read

  • Carbonisation, adze and axe marks, and hull shapingpp. 75–76
  • Comparative chronology and timber species of European dugoutsp. 74
  • Transverse ribs and hull-thickness controlpp. 76–77

Contents

  • Les pirogues de la fin du 5e millénaire avant notre ère74
  • Techniques d'évidage : le feu et l'herminette pour le fond, la hache pour les flancs74
  • Bibliographie78

Objects published here

4
  • Dugout 8, with extensive woodworking marks, Paris-Bercy, 8, Figs 1–3 (p. 74)
  • Dugout 1, with carbonised traces, Paris-Bercy, 1 (p. 75)
  • Dugout 3, with a transverse groove, Paris-Bercy, 3 (p. 75)
  • Dugout 6, with adze traces beneath burned patches, Paris-Bercy, 6 (p. 75)

People, places and institutions

People

  • S. McGrailasked about ribs in dugouts

Places

  • Paris-Bercyfindspot of ten oak dugouts
  • Seineriver branch beside the settlements
  • Neuchâtellake region with early dugout finds
  • Noyen-sur-Seinelocation of a Mesolithic dugout
  • Cerlier/Erlach-HeidenwegBronze Age dugout with hull sections
  • Yverdonlocation of Gallo-Roman boats

Also named: palais omnisports de Bercy, Zurich, Pesse, Dümmerlohausen, Bevaix, Atelier régional de conservation Nucléart.

Extent pp. 73–78, figs 1–3; bibliography

NeolithicChalcolithicLate Bronze AgeSeafaringTechnologyCraft ProductionChronology and Dating

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