Troglodytes caves of Anjou
Once again our trip to Angers turned out to be great success with many interesting places visited, but the highlight must surely be the trip to the Troglodytes caves of Anjou. Centred on the town of Doué la Fontaine on the south side of the River Loire, they cover a vast area and all were excavated by hand in the making of sarcophagi. Stone extraction has been carried out here for centuries particularly in the early medieval period. Recent evidence suggesting that some may go back as far as the 5th and 6th century AD. The quarrying has resulted in huge caverns, some as big as cathedrals. They were created because open quarrying was unaccepted to the local farmers who were unwilling to give up their precious farmland. The stone coffins were exported all over France, but demand fell when the church insisted that the souls of the dead did not permeate into the stone, but went up to heaven instead. When the work ceased the people in the area decided that the caves would make ideal homes so much of the population disappeared underground.
Society members were expertly guided through the caves by M Michel Cousins, who is not only credited with the discovery of many of the earliest caves, but has also written a highly acclaimed book on the subject (free copies of which were gratefully received by society members). In the evening we enjoyed a very unusual meal with M Cousin and M Broduer in a restaurant built inside one of the caves.
Chenehutte
Crop Marks
Whilst most of our party were touring underground, some were above ground working on a suspected Roman town. As mentioned in our previous newsletter M Boisbouvier had invited us to demonstrate our resistivity meter on his site at Chenehutte, on the banks of the Loire. In just a couple of hours we covered a 25m x 45m area in the centre of the site, just at the point where he suspected two major roads intersected.
Resistivity Results
As you can see the results are quite spectacular. Not only have we picked up the roads, but we also found the edge of the suspected forum. M Boisbouvier is very excited by the image, as this is positive evidence for the layout of the town. The only other evidence he has comes from aerial photos of crop-marks. M Boisbouvier is now able to confirm many of his predictions, one of which is the depression, centre left, which he is suggesting may be a fountain feature in the forum. Another feature is the diagonal ditch running just above the depression. Our survey has also captured the edge of a prominent building (top left), which again appears on his photo. M Boisbouvier is keen for us to return some day to finish the whole field but he may have to wait a year or two.
Tapis de Jean Lurçat
On the Friday when we arrived in Angers we were invited on a guided tour of this huge tapestry which was inspired by the famous Apocalypse Tapestry in the castle. It was started in 1957 and was still being worked on when M Lurçat died in 1966. Carrying on a tradition of tapestry-making going back to the 15th century, M Lurçat has created a spectacular modern work of art. I must admit though, my inspiration leant more towards the building in which it is housed. Dating from the 12th century this former hospital, dedicated to Saint Jean, is so big inside it could easily be mistaken for a large church or abbey. In the grounds outside, cloisters add to this impression.
Falaise
On the way home on Sunday, our stop this year was at Falaise where William the Conqueror's castle provided further inspiration. Once again Adrian Morris has been tasked with putting together a full presentation of our trip, which will be given at the AGM in February.
Next Meeting
Wednesday 1st October at the BP Centre (Scout HQ) in Greenough Street, at 7.30 pm as usual. Once again we are experiencing problems with our speaker. This month we were to have had Brian Marshal, but he has been forced to postpone for health reasons. Instead we have been able to secure Peter McCrones from the Lancashire Archaeological Service who will be giving us a talk on 'Recent Archaeological Discoveries in Lancashire'.
