The mousterian site of la hougue at Saint-vaast-la-Hougue (Manche): Human settlements and activities, stratigraphical synthesis [Le site moustérien de la hougue à Saint-vaast-la-Hougue (Manche): Implantations et activités humaines, synthèse stratigraphique]

摘要

The small island of La Hougue (Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue, Manche, Normandy) is fastened to the continent by a tombolo and formed by two granitic mounds. The lower parts of the slopes and the flat spaces between the mounds are covered by marine and periglacial materials deposited during the last interglacial and glacial cycle. Programmed archaeological excavations were realized between 1978 and 1985. The most important investigations have concerned a small space situated in the south of the mound that support the Vauban tower, outside of the seventeenth century fortifications, where the originally disposition of the sediments is preserved. Abundant Mousterian lithic industries using Levallois technique was retrieved from the eemian beach and from the Weichselian Early Glacial deposits. These last ones revealed also many occupation structures, especially combustion structures. The totality of the La Hougue small island was the object of geomorphological and more limited archaeological studies that revealed Mousterian occupation all around the two mounds.