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From urban dark earths to land uses at the site of Tours/Saint-Julien (France)

Mélanie Fondrillon (UMR 6173 CITERES, Laboratoire Archéologie et Territoires)

Abstract

From 2000 to 2003, excavations at the site of Tours/Saint-Julien have been carried out in order to characterise urban dark earths during late antiquity and Early Medieval times. In order to identify land uses and site formation processes at the origin of these anthropogenic deposits, both archaeological and geoarchaeological studies were carried out jointly; generalised study of coarse components was reinforced by micromorphology, analysis of organic matter and mineralogy. This set of analytical methods helped us to understand the stratification, accumulation and transformation processes, and to identify cultivated plots, charcoal and ash storage areas, stone paths and domestic areas with ground refuse in the thick dark earth deposit dated from the 4th to 12th centuries AD.