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In 2016, the University of Bergen conducted an archaeological field school at Hallingskeid in the high-mountains in Ulvik County, western Norway. One of the sites investigated was a bouldershelter with a cultural layer that showed periodical activity from the Late Mesolithic, the Neolithic, and the Bronze Age. At the time, this was the first boulder-shelter to be investigated in these mountain areas since the 1970s and provided valuable insight into the chronological depth of the activity at these permanent shelters. This raised the question whether this site was an anomaly or if these types of settlement structures were equally ‘important’ also before the transition to farming? Permanent shelters have received less focus as research subject the last 40 yerars, especially in the high mountains. A larger study of the Hardangervidda and Nordfjella mountain areas show a considerable use of these habitation structures at least from the Late Mesolithic and on. This paper aims to look at rockshelters and boulder-shelters in a longer perspective with a focus on their use before and after the Middle-Late Neolithic (MN-LN) transition to farming c. 2350 BC to discuss their importance among hunter-fisher-gatherer communities in South Norway.

International audience; In the heart of the upper Verdon valley (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, 04), the civitas of Eturamina extended between the communes of Thorame-Haute and Thorame-Basse, in the Issole Valley. Mentioned as the diocese's chief town in the year 442, the name of this locality nevertheless disappears from the texts although we know of the existence of an ephemeral bishopric that existed for a short time during the 5th century. No remains relating to this ancient city have been identified in the valley. Indeed, the settlement dynamics over time in this vast sector was poorly understood until 2018. Since then, an interdisciplinary and diachronic research program has led to the discovery of an unpublished site located on the Plateau de Saint-Pierre, at an altitude of more than 1300 m. Since 2019, archaeological operations have revealed protohistoric and ancient built structures and have led to the discovery of a funerary space from the High Empire and a second one dating from late Antiquity. This project aims to maximise our understanding of the site through interdisciplinary research: paleoenvironmental approaches (anthracology, pedo-anthracology, geomorphology, geoarchaeology), as well as geophysical survey. This approach will elucidate our understanding of the forms and evolution of human settlement and the natural environment's management. The diachronic occupation suggests that this vast plateau may have been an essential settlement point for the valley due to its topographical configuration and dominant position during Antiquity. The final phase of the site, also the best documented period, corresponds to the late antique funerary zone, represented by about twenty burials dated between the end of the 4th century and the beginning of the 6th century (dated by 14C). The tombs are located in the partially dismantled ruins of an High Empire settlement. However, it remains difficult to understand the parameters implying a possible collective memory place for the funerary space of the Late Antiquity. Practices differ from those of the High Empire, which are represented, for the moment, only by cremations. The deceased (adults and perinatals) are buried in tegulae coffins or, sometimes, in flexible envelopes (shrouds). The elements discovered suggest clothed burials, with ornamental items (bracelet, earrings and glass beads), in particular a medallion with Sabazios, interpreted as a souvenir of an oriental pilgrimage. Beyond these strictly funerary considerations, this site's major contribution lies in the acquisition, for the first time, of data concerning the late Antiquity populations of a mountainous area. This may represent one of the first Christian communities' funerary spaces in the Alps, which underwent Christianization relatively late, i.e. during the 5th century.

Diplomsko delo obravnava visokogorska, tj. nad zgornjo gozdno mejo ležeča najdišča v slovenskem alpskem svetu, na katerih so bili odkriti ostanki iz rimskega obdobja. V prvem delu so predstavljene definicije nekaterih osnovnih pojmov pojasnjen je koncept pašništva/transhumance, na katerega se visokogorska najdišča pogosto vežejo, pa tudi rudarstva. Podan je geografsko - zgodovinski oris območja, popisana je zgodovina arheoloških raziskav visokogorja pri nas ter kratka zgodovina predrimskega obiskovanja visokogorja. Opisan je proces iskanja najdišč in razložena metodologija dela na njih. Po poglavju o okoljskih spremembah, ki jih je v naravi mnogokrat sprožal tudi človek sam, se avtor osredotoči na popis najdišč, razdeljenih na tiste iz Julijskih ter tiste iz Kamniško - Savinjskih Alp in Karavank. Na koncu sledi še poglavje o duhovnem/kultnem udejstvovanju človeka v visokogorju ter zaključek. V delu je obravnavana in z najverjetnejšo hipotezo pojasnjena tudi razlika med rimskodobno aktivnostjo v gorah pri nas, kjer je ta bila izrazita, ter drugod po alpskem loku, kjer je bilo stanje ravno obratno. In this thesis, the author writes about the Roman era finds from the Slovenian and some foreign high alpine (above the upper treeline) regions. Concepts of mining and pastoralism, often tightly knit with high alpine archaeological sites, are explained in the first part, along with the geographical and historical overview of the region. The author also delves into the research history of high alpine sites in Slovenia, the ways of discovering human traces in such landscapes and how to interpret them. The chapter about often anthropogenic environmental changes in the past is followed by a list of so far discovered high alpine archaeological sites in the Slovenian Alps, cathegorized by its main mountain ranges. A chapter at the end about votive findings is also included. The thesis also deals with a substantial archaeological lacuna in roman era sites in some european alpine regions, and gives a probable explanation on why this state of affairs is completely the opposite in the Slovenian Alps.

EnglishSites occupied by Roman soldiers during the second half of first century BC have been found between 2300 and 3100 m altitude in the Poenine Alps. After an introduction to the research program on these positions, a catalog presents the results of the investigations on the Valais sites. The confrontation of these discoveries with historical sources and, more particularly, with the events that led to the establishment of Roman hegemony over this region, as well as the reminder of the methodological reservations inherent to this exercise, serve as a conclusion. All this cast a new light over the late-republican period in this part of the Alps and presents a state of this ongoing research. francaisDes sites occupes par des militaires romains durant la seconde moitie du premier siecle avant J.-C. ont ete mis en evidence entre 2300 et 3100 m d’altitude dans les Alpes poenines. Apres une introduction au programme de recherche sur ces positions, un catalogue presente les resultats des investigations sur les sites valaisans. La confrontation de ces decouvertes aux sources historiques et plus particulierement aux evenements ayant amene a l’etablissement de l’hegemonie romaine sur cette region, ainsi que le rappel des reserves methodologiques inherentes a cet exercice font office de conclusion. L’ensemble amene un nouvel eclairage sur la periode tardo- republicaine dans cette partie des Alpes et presente un etat des lieux de cette recherche toujours en cours.

Cette contribution présente un bilan des connaissances sur les principaux sites néolithiques terrestres de l’avant-pays savoyard et de la cluse de Chambéry, qui demeuraient jusqu’alors très mal connus. Situés entre les Alpes et la vallée du Rhône, aux marges de plusieurs grandes aires culturelles, les six gisements décrits apportent des informations importantes pour la connaissance des premières sociétés agro-pastorales alpines. L’historique des recherches s’efforce de restituer la localisation des fouilles anciennes et les conditions de prélèvement des vestiges, afin d’évaluer l’état de conservation et l’intérêt des gisements. Les mobiliers néolithiques découverts, malheureusement souvent dépourvus de contexte stratigraphique, sont largement illustrés. Leur analyse permet, pour chaque site, de proposer un phasage chronologique des occupations et d’aborder le jeu des influences culturelles entre le début du Ve millénaire et la fin du IIIe millénaire. This paper presents the state of knowledge of the principal land-based sites in the Savoyard foreland and the transverse valley of Chambery, which until recently have remained poorly known. Situated between the Alps and the Rhône valley, on the edge of several large cultural areas, the six sites described provide important information regarding the early alpine agro-pastoral societies. The case history of the research carried out attempts to establish the location of early excavations and how the finds were removed in order to assess the remaining interest of the sites. The Neolithic objects found, unfortunately often without their stratigraphic context, are broadly illustrated. For each site, analysis makes possible a timeline of the occupations and to make an initial appraisal of the cultural influences in operation between the early fifth and late third millennium. Der vorliegende Beitrag präsentiert eine Bestandsaufnahme der Kenntnisse der wichtigsten, bislang weitgehend unbekannten Landsiedlungen des savoyischen Alpenvorlandes und der cluse de Chambéry. Die sechs Fundplätze, die zwischen Alpen und Rhonetal, am Rand mehrerer großer Kulturkreise liegen, liefern bedeutende Informationen zu den ersten Gemeinschaften, die in den Alpen Ackerbau und Viehzucht betrieben. Die Forschungsgeschichte bemüht sich die Lokalisierung der Altgrabungen und die Bedingungen zu rekonstruieren, unter den die Artefakte eingesammelt wurden, um den Erhaltungszustand und die Bedeutung der Fundplätze einzuschätzen. Das neolithische leider oft aus seinem Fundzusammenhang gerissene Fundmaterial wird eingehend dargestellt. Seine Analyse erlaubt es für jeden Fundplatz eine chronologische Einteilung in Siedlungsphasen vorzuschlagen und die kulturellen Einflüsse zwischen dem Anfang des 5. und dem Ende des 3. Jahrtausend zur Sprache zu bringen.

A great test pits program led on both hillsides of Little-St-Bernard pass allowed to discover 11 sites busy from average and final Neolithic, as well as a series of indications concentrated in the same zone or totally isolated, the dating of which is often more difficult. The altitudinal distribution of these data presents a tripartition which coincides with lower half of the mountain floor, the superior fringe of the same floor, then superior half of the subalpine and the transition with the alpine floor. A basic typology of the installation contexts allows to distinguish perched sites which are hyper majority at the foot of hillside, open sites very scattered at various height and shelters under rock often small which were met only in the superior heights. The presence of sites distant from the main axis of communication in heights averages and especially superiors show that traffic and their control is not the only motivations of the land use. The highlighting of open sites distant from the way pass could give evidence from the average Neolithic of the first attempts of farms on projecting ledges well exposed until 1 600 m of height. Facilitated by the realization of a large number of radiocarbons dating, the understanding of the Holocene pedo-sedimentary dynamics allows to propose the existence of sedimentary truncations particularly marked in bass and in high height, connected to the development of the anthropic activities. The permanent character of the low height establishments cannot be demonstrated and does not seem very probable. These observations take away us from the proposed Neolithic occupation model in Valais. The sometimes-delicate identification of poor levels in remains but marked well in the thickness of the sedimentary deposits, but also the size relatively reduced sites and their terracing altitudinal rather regular, seem compatible with the hypothesis of relay on routes seen frequently regularly by small groups of people, maybe in connection with mainly pastoral activities. The exploitation of the local mineral resources seems to intervene only in an opportunist and limited way. Finally, our data do not allow to give to the Little-St-Bernard pass an important role in the alpine traffic of artefacts in green rock native of the Italian hillside., Un vaste programme de sondage mené sur les deux versants du col du Petit-Saint-Bernard a permis de découvrir 11 sites occupés au Néolithique moyen et final, ainsi qu’une série d’indices dont la datation est souvent plus imprécise. La répartition altitudinale de ces données présente une tripartition avec des concentrations positionnées sur la moitié inférieure de l’étage montagnard, sur la frange supérieure du même étage, puis sur la moitié supérieure du subalpin et la transition avec l’étage alpin. Une typologie sommaire des contextes d’installation permet de distinguer des sites perchés qui sont très majoritaires en pied de versant, des sites de milieux ouverts très dispersés en altitude et des abris-sous-roche souvent modestes dans les altitudes supérieures. La présence de sites éloignés de l’axe principal de communication dans des altitudes moyennes et surtout supérieures montre que les circulations et leur contrôle ne sont pas les seules motivations de l’occupation du territoire. Elle pourrait attester dès le Néolithique moyen des premières tentatives d’exploitations agro-pastorales sur des replats bien exposés jusqu’à 1 600 m d’altitude. Facilitée par la réalisation d’un grand nombre de datations radiocarbones, la compréhension de la dynamique pédo-sédimentaire holocène permet de proposer l’existence de troncatures sédimentaires liées au développement des activités anthropiques et particulièrement marquées en basse et en haute altitude. Le caractère permanent des établissements de basse altitude ne peut être démontré et semble peu probable. Ces observations nous éloignent du modèle d’occupation proposé pour le Valais. L’identification parfois délicate de niveaux pauvres en vestiges archéologiques mais bien marqués dans les accumulations sédimentaires, ainsi que la taille relativement réduite des sites et leur étagement altitudinal assez régulier, paraissent compatibles avec l’hypothèse de relais sur des parcours fréquentés régulièrement par de petits groupes de personnes, peut-être en lien avec des activités principalement pastorales. L’exploitation des ressources minérales locales ne semble intervenir que de manière opportuniste et ponctuelle. Enfin, nos données ne permettent pas d’accorder au col du Petit-Saint-Bernard un rôle important dans les circulations des artefacts en roches vertes alpines originaires du versant italien., Rey Pierre-Jérome,Moulin Bernard. L’occupation des versants du col du Petit-Saint-Bernard au Néolithique : premier bilan des données acquises lors des campagnes de sondages du programme Alpis Graia. In: Collection EDYTEM. Cahiers de géographie, numéro 20, 2018. L’Homme dans les Alpes, de la pierre au métal. pp. 241-255.

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International audience; The coastline of Thonon-les-Bains and its hinterland provide a favourable framework to the spatial and diachronic analysis of land use during Protohistory. This synthesis is based on the study of old finds and the results of recent rescue operations, in an area between the Dranse and Redon rivers. About 15 sites form a relatively well-documented micro-region, extending from the pile-dwellings village of Rives 2 to the settlements and cemeteries stepped on glacial terraces, on the marshlands filling the sinkholes of “Aviet” in Allinges, and of “Versoie” next to the Genevray.

Final Neolithic ceramic assemblages are still rare in the northern French Alps. Since the excavation of Les Baigneurs (Charavines, Isère) in the 1970s, the only important sites to complete the documentation are those of Parc La Grange (Geneva, Switzerland) and Les Balmes (Sollières-Sardières, Savoie). Although inclusions are sometimes described, none of these sets have been studied with regard to modelling and finishing techniques. This article presents unpublished sets from a stratified pile-dwelling site, which was studied from both technical and stylistic points of view. These data are compared with smaller ceramic sets, also unpublished, from other pile dwellings in Savoy. A wider contextualization allows the studied site to be replaced within the cultural dynamics of the second half of the Final Neolithic. In 1985, a test pit in Lake Bourget, on the submerged pile dwelling Conjux 3 (La Chatière, Conjux, Savoie), revealed a stratigraphy going back to the Final Neolithic, and comprising three superposed levels defined by a series of radiocarbon and dendrochronological dates (levels 1, 2sup and 2inf). A Bayesian model based on the seven most reliable dates leads to the following chronological steps : − 2905 to − 2660 cal. BC (level 2inf), − 2750 to − 2570 cal. BC (level 2sup), and − 2580 to − 2455 cal. BC (level 1). Nearly 29 kg of ceramic fragments were found in these layers. The large number of assemblies has identified 73 stratigraphically related units, with 40 incomplete bowls. Coarse-ware jars -cylindrical, ovoid or barrel-shaped -mainly prevail in the corpus. Their lip is generally rounded and is, in a few cases, decorated with tool impressions. Frequent plastic ornaments are protruding horizontal strips and smooth cords, which may be single or multiple. Technical study of the pottery shows a quasi-systematic use of crystalline inclusions, mainly composed of crushed granitic stone in level 2 and crystalline sand in level 1, practices that seem clearly related to traditions found on the Swiss Plateau. The body and neck are mainly built by coiling, using stretched coils with oblique alternating joins, as in the contemporary pottery of the Jura groups. The exterior surface of many bowls is treated by burnishing or by polishing which has left no traces. Partially oxidizing firing dominates, even though some vessels that may have been made by firing in a reducing atmosphere — mainly small bowls with fine walls — occur in level 2inf and, less frequently, in the other levels. Finally, burnt residues are numerous and attest to the culinary use of most of the large pots. Morphological comparisons show northern influences from the Swiss Plateau in the two lower levels. Influences from the Treilles group (Causses region) can also be detected, while relations with Jura groups (Clairvaux and Chalain) seem more tenuous. The assemblage from level 2inf is thus transitory between the Lüscherz group and the groups without ornamentation from the middle Rhone Valley. Level 2sup points to a limited impact of the first Auvernier-Corded Ware phase, while a vessel with a reduced opening recalls some Italian influence. Pottery from level 1 no longer participates in the evolution of the Auvernier-Corded Ware, but rather shows links with ceramics from the upper levels of Charavines, and points to the development of a local group in a more southern tradition. These hypotheses are quite compatible with the chronological steps indicated by the Bayesian model. The series from Conjux 3 are compared with small unpublished ceramic sets from the pile-dwelling settlements of the Bourget and Annecy lakes. Around Lake Bourget, the settlements of Sous-le-Four and Mémars 1 (Brison-Saint-Innocent, Savoie) and Les Bourres (Tresserve, Savoie) delivered bowls and dates similar to those of Conjux. Technically, a clear division can be observed between sets from the north of the lake, characterized by dominant crystalline inclusions, and Les Bourres, on the southern shore, with carbonated inclusions mainly composed of crushed calcite. Other indications towards stronger southern influences can be seen in the morphology of the ceramics from the southern shore of Lake Bourget. The use of crushed calcite, already known around the 30th century at Angon (Talloires, Haute-Savoie), is dated to between the 26th century and the first half of the 24th century at Les Bourres (Tresserve, Savoie). This practice, of southern origin, seems to cover a fairly wide area between the Rhone and the inner Alpine valleys in the course of the second third of the third millennium. The Final Neolithic phase at Conjux 3 points to the gradual fading of northern influences during the first half of the third millennium, to the north of Lake Bourget. The strong relations with the recent Lüscherz were followed by more limited northern relations during the early phase of Auvernier-Corded Ware, then by a quite clear break (although less visible in the technical aspects). The rise of influences from Southern France and Italy is probably one of the causes of this evolution, as can be seen in the levels at La Chauve-Souris (Donzère, Drôme) and the two successive assemblages from Les Baigneurs, Charavines. The apparent reluctance to call on ornaments, whether of southern, Jura, or northern origin, and the use of crystalline inclusions are characteristics shared by Conjux 3 and Les Baigneurs, Charavines. Other stylistic similarities can be observed in pottery from these two sites, but the present state of studies of the collections does not allow an exact definition of their relations. The importance of northern influences in the pottery from Charavines and other cultural groups with non-decorated ceramics from the middle Rhone Valley (Les Bruyères, Allan, Drôme) is still subject to discussion. Even if they do not allow this question to be brought to a close, the assemblages from Conjux 3 provide a welcome geographical marker to help in understanding relations with the Swiss Plateau during the first third of the third millennium, and emphasize a northern filiation concerning the use of crystalline inclusions frequently found at Charavines., Un sondage dans le lac du Bourget, sur le site immergé de Conjux 3 (lieudit «la Chatière » sur la commune de Conjux, Savoie), a révélé en 1985 une stratigraphie du Néolithique final comportant trois niveaux superposés, bien calés par une série de dates 14C et dendrochronologiques (niveau 1, 2sup et 2inf). Une modélisation bayésienne permet de proposer un positionnement chronologique assez précis de la succession des occupations : entre − 2580 et − 2455 av. n. è. pour le niveau 1, entre − 2750 et − 2570 pour le niveau 2sup, entre − 2905 et − 2660 pour le niveau 2inf. Vingt-neuf kilos de fragments céramiques ont permis d’individualiser soixante-treize unités d’appariement et de restituer une quarantaine de formes incomplètes. Le corpus est largement dominé par les jarres cylindriques, ovoïdes ou en tonneau, en pâtes grossières et comprend également quelques petits récipients. Les éléments plastiques sont constitués de languettes horizontales et de cordons lisses horizontaux, uniques ou multiples. L’étude technique des récipients montre l’usage presque systématique d’inclusions cristallines. Le montage des panses et des cols est majoritairement réalisé au colombin étiré à plans de joint obliques alternés. Une proportion importante des surfaces externes est traitée par brunissage ou par la réalisation de polis sans traces. La cuisson partiellement oxydante domine. Les résidus carbonisés sont nombreux et attestent de la fonction culinaire de la plupart des grandes jarres. Les comparaisons morphologiques soulignent des connexions septentrionales dans les deux niveaux inférieurs. L’ensemble 2inf constitue un intermédiaire entre le Lüscherz et les groupes inornés de moyenne vallée du Rhône. Des influences caussenardes issues du groupe des Treilles sont également perceptibles. L’ensemble 2sup traduit un impact limité de la première phase de l’Auvernier-Cordé. Enfin, le mobilier céramique du niveau 1 présente des affinités avec le mobilier du niveau supérieur des Baigneurs à Charavines (Isère) et reflète le développement d’un groupe local dans une ambiance un peu plus méridionale. Ces propositions sont parfaitement compatibles avec les intervalles chronologiques issus de la modélisation bayésienne. Ces ensembles sont comparés à de petits lots de vestiges inédits issus des lacs du Bourget et d’Annecy. Sur le Bourget, une nette distinction s’observe entre les récipients provenant des gisements du nord du lac, caractérisés par l’emploi majoritaire d’inclusions de roches cristallines, et les vases des Bourres (Tresserve, Savoie) au sud du lac, où domine l’emploi d’inclusions carbonatées, fréquemment constituées de calcite pilée. Sur le lac d’Annecy, l’ajout de calcite apparaît de manière prépondérante sur trois sites. Présente assez précocement dès le xxxe siècle à Angon (Talloires, Haute-Savoie), cette pratique d’origine méridionale semble s’étendre assez largement dans le second tiers du IIIe millénaire, entre le cours du Rhône et les vallées internes des Alpes. La séquence de Conjux 3 décrit l’affaiblissement progressif des influences septentrionales dans la première moitié du IIIe millénaire, au nord du Bourget. Aux fortes interactions qui existent pendant le Lüscherz récent succèdent des liens plus limités durant la phase ancienne de l’Auvernier-Cordé, puis une déconnexion assez claire, moins affirmée cependant dans les paramètres techniques. La montée en puissance des influences méridionales et italiennes, perceptible à l’échelle régionale, constitue vraisemblablement l’une des causes de cette évolution. L’apparente réticence à l’acquisition des décors, qu’ils soient d’origine méridionale, jurassienne ou septentrionale, et l’emploi d’inclusions cristallines constituent des caractères partagés entre Conjux 3 et les Baigneurs (Charavines, Isère). D’autres convergences stylistiques existent entre les récipients de ces deux sites, mais l’absence d’étude technique des céramiques de Charavines ne permet pas une parfaite appréciation des liens qu’ils entretiennent. L’importance des influences septentrionales dans les productions céramiques des faciès inornés de moyenne vallée du Rhône reste actuellement très discutée. Sans permettre de conclure, les ensembles de Conjux 3 apportent un nouveau jalon géographique pour la compréhension des relations avec le plateau Suisse dans le premier tiers du IIIe millénaire et soulignent une filiation septentrionale pour l’usage des inclusions cristallines, bien représenté à Charavines., Rey Pierre-Jérome, Marguet A. Caractérisation technique et culturelle de la céramique du site lacustre de Conjux 3 (lac du Bourget, Savoie) : le Néolithique final des avant-pays savoyards en question. In: Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française, tome 113, n°1, 2016. pp. 57-94.

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Any account on the prehistory of the Alps has to start by addressing some fundamental research questions and issues. The specific spaciotemporal Alpine entities formed by ecological, economical, and cultural constraints can only be understood through a differentiated and fundamentally pluridisciplinary approach. Both archaeological and palaeoecological data, necessary to investigate the complex processes of colonization, seulement and use of the Alpine territory and resources, need a critical and targeted acquisition. Even if it is possible to draw a scénario of a progressive colonization of the Alpine region throughout Prehistory, many questions remain unanswered, in particular regarding interactions between climate and human activity., Résumé : Avant de se lancer dans un récit de la préhistoire des Alpes, il faut s'arrêter quelques instants sur les enjeux scientifiques d'une telle entreprise. Seule une recherche originale et fondamentalement pluridisciplinaire permet d'aborder des entités spatio-temporelles alpines résultant des contraintes écologiques, économiques et sociales. Les données archéologiques et paléoécologiques, nécessaires pour comprendre les processus complexes de colonisation, d'occupation et d'exploitation du territoire alpin, nécessitent une acquisition critique et ciblée. Si l 'on peut proposer un scénario de l'occupation progressive du domaine alpin au cours de la préhistoire, maintes questions perdurent, notamment en ce qui concerne les interactions entre climat et activités humaines., Della Casa Philippe. La préhistoire des Alpes : enjeux scientifiques, méthodes et perspectives de la recherche. In: Le Globe. Revue genevoise de géographie, tome 149, 2009. Alpes et préhistoire. pp. 7-28.

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