Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex
Late Neolithic (3500-2500 BCE)·Late Neolithic·🇫🇷 Provence, Bouches-du-Rhone, France
About
About Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex
Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex in Provence, Bouches-du-Rhone, France is a Late Neolithic (3500-2500 BCE) megalithic attributed to Late Neolithic. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal chamber 12 × 4 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 43.6736N 4.6399E controls access to Provence, Bouches-du-Rhone resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey megalithic for Provence, Bouches-du-Rhone, illustrating Late Neolithic construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Scale of population vs agricultural catchment
- 02Ritual vs domestic use
Theories
- 01Ancestral burial reuse over centuries
- 02Astronomical alignment hypothesis
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 2900 BCE
- Period
- Late Neolithic (3500-2500 BCE)
- Culture
- Late Neolithic
- Purpose
- Collective burial and territorial marker for agro-pastoral community
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c. 2900 BCE
Initial construction of Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex main structure
c. 1258 BCE
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically at Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex
1992–2018
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
43.6736° N · 4.6399° E · -8 m · 3 mapped features
Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex — Main Megalithic Feature
cairnPrimary cairn at Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex — rock-cut facade with stratified deposits
43.6733° N · 4.6403° EGrotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex — Secondary Enclosure
plazaAncillary plaza at Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex — rock-cut facade with stratified deposits
43.6742° N · 4.6392° EGrotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex — Outlier Rock Art Panel
reservoirOutlier reservoir panel linked to Grotte des Fees Dolmen Arles Annex ceremonial landscape
43.6719° N · 4.6410° E