Conference "The last hunters of the end of ice ages" by Fiona Kildea (Inrap) and Quentin Dardaillon
Come discover through a conference presented by the Inrap archaeologists, the latest archaeological discoveries made in Montlouis-sur-Loire. 'In the space of two years, three new archaeological sites of about 12,000 years have been excavated by the same research team of the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) in the middle of the Loire Valley. The end of glacial times is marked by a rapid alternation of cold and more temperate climatic phases generating major changes in river dynamics, vegetation cover and wildlife. Three camps of the last great culture of the Upper Palaeolithic, the Laborian, were excavated between 2020 and 2022 in Muides-sur-Loire (41) and Montlouis-sur-Loire (37). Their study makes it possible to document the evolution of the technical traditions of flint cutting, at the heart of the economies of these groups, in accordance with the available natural resources. Hunting equipment, hunted game, art furniture and the spatial organization of the camps are all fields that are informed by the observations made during the excavations.