19 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

60 Elongated Structures of Unknown Function and Neolithic Silos Discovered in France

The Pfulgriesheim site, located in northeastern France’s Alsace region, underwent extensive archaeological research before being developed as a new urban area. The excavation led to the discovery of over a thousand archaeological structures, including an important settlement center from the Late Neolithic period and isolated medieval funerary monuments.

The Pfulgriesheim site in question is located on a small loessic eminence that towers twenty meters above two small rivers, the Souffel to the south and one of its tributaries, the Leisbach, to the north.

The excavation also highlighted the poverty of Iron Age structures in very low-status settlements. A large number of agricultural structures were unearthed.

These investigations have made it feasible to piece together the history of human habitation in this region, offering insightful knowledge about the prehistoric occupants and their thousands of years of way of life.

The Late Neolithic is home to one of Pfulgriesheim’s most important discoveries. Evidence from this phase indicated the presence of a sophisticated storage system made up of big silos buried in the loess soil. These large silos, designed to store food and other resources, were found in a good state of preservation, with some of them dug to a depth of up to 2 meters.

View of the upper levels of a Late Neolithic silo (4000-3400 B.C.), largely filled with burned cob, Pfulgriesheim. Photo: Heidi Cicutta / INRAP
View of the upper levels of a Late Neolithic silo (4000-3400 B.C.), largely filled with burned cob, Pfulgriesheim. Photo: Heidi Cicutta / INRAP

The silos were organized in groups, spaced a few meters apart. No traces of buildings associated with these silos were found at Pfulgriesheim; however, at least one silo in each group contained large quantities of burnt mudbrick, up to about half a tonne, suggesting the presence of buildings nearby.

Following a pattern that is now well known for this period in the region, that of burials in circular pits, around ten silos yielded burials. Future dating techniques and pottery analysis will help clarify the chronology of these burials and establish whether or not they occurred during the same period, providing insight into the occupation and management practices of these human groups.

The discovery of about sixty elongated structures, or “clefts,” at the site is another fascinating finding that has piqued the interest of archaeologists. Though their precise purpose is still up for discussion, these extremely narrow, V-, U-, or Y-shaped structures have been identified as potential hunting-related installations or traps.

Cross-section of a Neolithic cleft, Pfulgriesheim. Photo: Anaïs Viennot / INRAP
Cross-section of a Neolithic cleft, Pfulgriesheim. Photo: Anaïs Viennot / INRAP

Since there isn’t enough archaeological evidence to make a firm age and function determination just yet, precise dating of these “clefts” using carbon-14 analysis will be essential. However, based on parallels with analogous discoveries in other parts of eastern France, the main hypothesis posits that these structures might have a hunting connection.

Two minor Iron Age settlements, specifically from the La Tène period, have also been found during the excavation. The first settlement, which dates to the early La Tène period (480–280 B.C.), is made up of multiple silos and a sunken building with a square shape, which is a fairly typical typology for that era.

View of an excavated building from the Early Stone Age (480-280 BC) at the end of the excavation, Pfulgriesheim (Bas-Rhin). Photo: Fanny Bricka, Inrap
View of an excavated building from the Early Stone Age (480-280 BC) at the end of the excavation, Pfulgriesheim (Bas-Rhin). Photo: Fanny Bricka, Inrap

Three of the sides of the enclosure that surrounded the second settlement, which dates to the late La Tène period (150–25 B.C.), have been partially preserved. It looks like this settlement is a small rural business that is most likely a part of a larger territorial system that is governed by surrounding farms.

Three circular funerary enclosures dating from the 7th century AD (Early Middle Ages) were also discovered on the site.

INRAP

Cover Image Credit: Institut National de Recherches Archéologiques Préventives (INRAP), Simon Diemer

Related Articles

New study investigates the development of the Scandinavian gene pool over the latest 2000 years

5 January 2023

5 January 2023

A new study resolves the complex relations between geography, ancestry, and gene flow in Scandinavia – encompassing the Roman Age,...

Rare ivory plaques from First Temple Period were discovered in Jerusalem

8 September 2022

8 September 2022

An extraordinary find was made in Jerusalem: an assemblage of ivory plaques from the First Temple period, one of only...

An ancient bronze hand may be the oldest and longest example of Vasconic script

20 February 2024

20 February 2024

Researchers have discovered rare evidence of an enigmatic ancient language on a 2,000-year-old bronze hand. The inscription on the hand...

The Temple of Persian Water Goddess Anahita Discovered in Iraqi Kurdistan

8 March 2024

8 March 2024

Archaeologists excavating the Rabana-Merquly mountain fortress in what is present-day Iraqi Kurdistan suggest that it may also have served as...

Archaeologists discover a 4,000-year-old stone board game in Oman

10 January 2022

10 January 2022

The joint Polish-Omani archaeology team has discovered a 4,000-year-old stone board game whilst excavating a Bronze Age and Iron Age...

A new study reveals the Achaemenid Kingdom paid its workers silver

21 September 2021

21 September 2021

A new study on inscribed clay tablets that were used in the treasury archives of the Achaemenid Empire revealed that...

A Unique Structure Discovered in the City of David Ancient Jerusalem – The Only One of Its Kind

14 January 2025

14 January 2025

A unique structure was discovered on the eastern slope of the City of David, within the Walls of the Jerusalem...

A Mysterious Partially Submerged Structure in Ireland is a Prehistoric Tomb, archaeologist says

25 October 2022

25 October 2022

New research has revealed that a mysterious structure found many years ago on the eastern shore of Cork Harbor in...

Archaeologists discovered a Thracian tomb from the time of the Odrysian kingdom in southern Bulgaria

13 September 2023

13 September 2023

Archaeologists from the Haskovo Regional Museum of History discovered a third Thracian tomb with murals the likes of those in...

Karahantepe will shed light on the mysteries of the Prehistoric period

7 October 2021

7 October 2021

Karahantepe’s ancient site, which is home to Neolithic-era T-shaped obelisks similar to the ones in the world-famous Göbeklitepe, will reveal...

Excavation in Larissa finds a Hellenistic era sanctuary

27 November 2021

27 November 2021

The Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sport reported on Friday the discovery of ancient Greek and Hellenistic era structures at...

Ancient Agora Discovered in Hyllarima: Shops to Be Excavated in the Heart of the City

29 June 2025

29 June 2025

A major archaeological discovery has been made in the ancient city of Hyllarima in southwestern Türkiye—the city’s central agora has...

Meaning of Agora Gate Found in Turkey’s Ancient City of Aizanoi

8 June 2021

8 June 2021

The good news continues to come from the ancient city of Aizanoi, located in Çavdarhisar district, 50 km from Kütahya....

Ritual Sacrifice of Pregnant Woman: Ecuador may Reflect the Community’s Fear of Her Power

28 January 2025

28 January 2025

In a remarkable archaeological find in Ecuador, researchers have uncovered the rich burial of a pregnant woman and her fetus,...

New study says earliest recorded kiss occurred 4500 years ago in Mesopotamia

18 May 2023

18 May 2023

The University of Copenhagen according to researchers, humanity’s earliest recorded kiss occurred around 4,500 years ago in the ancient Middle...