Un atelier gallo-romain de pierres à aiguiser découvert à Buizingen (Hal, Belgique) : reconstitution des étapes de fabrication et détermination des origines géologiques et géographiques du matériau ARCHEOLOGIE DE LA PICARDIE ET DU NORD DE LA FRANCE (REVUE DU NORD, T. 94, 2012, N°398, P. 143-157)

Abstract:This paper focuses on the latest research on the production of Roman whetstones in northern Gaul. To date, little has been written about this specialised industry. However, three workshops producing whetstones were discovered recently in the north of Gaul in Buizingen (Province of Flemish Brabant, Belgium), Nereth (Province of Liège, Belgium) and Le Châtelet-sur-Sormonne (Department of Ardennes, France). Production debris and rough-outs recovered at these sites allowed us to reconstruct the operational sequence of manufacture, from the choice of raw material to the finished product. Technological studies enabled us to determine the production stages and highlight the similarities and differences between the three study areas. Analyses of the materials reveal the use of fine-grained sedimentary and low-grade metamorphic rocks outcropping near the workshops. All these rocks are linked to the Caledonian inliers of Brabant-London, Stavelot-Venn, and Rocroi. The large amount of waste found at Le Châtelet-sur-Sormonne, far more than that recovered at Buizingen and Nereth, is indicative of the economic importance of this whetstone workshop. This importance is reflected in the fact that whetstones from Le Châtelet-sur-Sormonne are distributed over a large area throughout Belgium, France (Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Picardie and Champagne-Ardenne regions), Germany, and the Netherlands. This paper presents the waste and rough-outs from the three production sites. It also defines rock types and their origins and offers insights into whetstone manufacturing processes and techniques.

Summary The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate cross‐Channel exchange of calcareous sandstone‐type whetstones derived from the Weald (Sussex, UK) in the Roman period. The presence of this particular type of whetstone at several Roman sites on the Continent – more specifically, in Belgium, France and the Netherlands – is reported for the first time. The morphology, geological provenance, petrographic characteristics and distribution patterns are discussed, based on a comparative analysis with archaeological and geological reference material. The geological analysis identifies a common geological source for the Continental finds: the very fine‐grained, thin‐bedded, flagstone‐like calcareous sandstone beds of the Lower Cretaceous Wealden Clay Formation. These sandstones were, most probably, extracted in the north‐western part of the Weald area. The distribution pattern of the archaeological material implies the importance of personal mobility, with potential military affinities.

Résumé Les trois embarcations gallo-romaines trouvées à Pommeroeul en 1975 lors du creusement du canal Pommeroeul-Condé ont été datées par dendrochronologie en 1995 par le Laboratoire de dendrochronologie de l’Université de Liège. Sur les trois embarcations (deux chalands et une pirogue) découvertes et analysées, l’une d’entre elle, la pirogue, n’avait pas pu être datée. L’augmentation de sites gallo-romains découverts en Belgique et datés par dendrochronologie a permis la création d’un référentiel pour la période gallo-romaine. Avant d’être intégré dans le système, chaque site a fait l’objet d’une révision complète : de la formation de la moyenne à sa datation. Cette révision a permis de confirmer la date du chaland III (188 ap. J.-C.), ainsi que celle du coffre (104 ap. J.-C.) trouvé à proximité de la pirogue. Par contre, la date du chaland IV est mise en doute. Par ailleurs, la pirogue a été à nouveau analysée : la date de 67 ap. J.-C. ne peut cependant être envisagée que comme une hypothèse.