A team of student-volunteers led by an archaeologist discovered a message hidden inside a glass vial in a vase at an excavation site in the north of France.
Left there almost 200 years previously by a local archaeologist, it said that P.J. Feret had excavated the site, a fortified Gaulish enclosure located on chalk cliff-tops near Dieppe, and was going to continue in the surrounding area.
It was described as both “extremely touching” and “extremely rare” by Guillaume Blondel, 39, who led the team and who heads the archaeological service for the town of Eu.
“It was a total surprise. It felt like directly communicating with the archaeologists that came before us and you cannot help but ask, ‘what ceremony happened when they buried this vial?’” he told The Connexion.
The note was left by Pierre-Jacques Féret, an archaeologist from DieppesGuillaume Blondel
“It is amazing to think that they knew someone would come and excavate here again.”
The note reads: ‘P.J Féret, a native of Dieppe, member of various intellectual societies, carried out excavations here in January 1825. He continues his investigations in this vast area known as the Cité de Limes or Camp de César’.
In the original French: 'P. J. Féret natif de Dieppe, membre de plusieurs sociétés sçavantes a fouillé ici en janvier 1825. Il continue ses recherches dans toute cette vaste enceinte appelée Cité de Limes ou Camp de César'
When searching the Camp de César, located between Puys and Bracquemont (Seine-Maritime), it was immediately clear that the team had come across something that was not from Gaulish times.
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First, they made sure that it was not a booby trap dating back to World War Two.
“In archaeology, something like this happening is very rare. In construction, this might happen sometimes, with carpenters leaving notes in the wood for people to later find,” said Mr Blondin.
“In our sector, you are not typically supposed to re-excavate sites that have already been dug up.”
“Of course, we will be leaving our own time capsule for people in the future to find.”
The note was kept in a glass vialGuillaume Blondel
The dig was successful, confirming that the site was indeed a ‘talus’, a form of fortification and more objects from the Gaulish period were found.
The dig took place as part of a wider effort to inventorise sites in the surrounding areas that are at risk of disappearing, such as this one located on chalk cliffs which are also common on the British coast.
“It was a pleasure to undertake this dig with my team of volunteers,” said Mr Blondin.
