ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE

It has long been known that the Rhône's right bank, facing Vienne, was occupied during Antiquity, but it was also imagined that several large houses existed, dispersed throughout the countryside.
Preceding the construction of a high school in 1967, archaeologists began a large dig on the site of Plaine.

They were in for a surprise: they discovered the vestiges of an entire city! Since then, the site has been acquired by the Rhône Department and classified as a historical monument. It has been restored and renovated for visits.
Created at the end of the 1st century BC, this residential district developed intensively around 50 AD because of the economic importance of the Rhône Valley.

The wealth of its inhabitants is expressed in the construction of veritable little palaces. Around them are paved streets, warehouses, and workshops, and also the public baths, comprising an urban landscape whose organization and concern for comfort whose modernity is surprising.

The House of the Ocean Gods
The House of the Ocean Gods was built around 160 BC. With more than 3000 m² of ground surface, it is among the vastest known in Gaul. The formal rooms, each around 100m², are divided around large colonnaded gardens, animated by pools and water jets. This architecture points to the unreserved adoption of a Roman way of life by wealthy Viennois.


The Wrestlers' Baths
In each city of Roman Gaul, there were numerous bathing spaces, from simple neighborhood bathhouses to very large establishments. As in today's gyms, people came to exercise, relax, visit with friends, and even learn, since some of them included libraries.

 

Roman Roadway in Granite
The granite pavement, reserved for urban portions of streets, is a defining image of Romanization. The network of sewers, piping, sidewalks, and the paved streets offer an astonishingly contemporary image of the Roman city. The maintenance of these constructions required the means and the organization that characterized urban life of the Pax Romana.

Created at the end of the 1st century BC, this residential district developed intensively around 50 AD because of the economic importance of the Rhône Valley.

The wealth of its inhabitants is expressed in the construction of veritable “little palaces.” Around them are paved pathways, warehouses, and workshops, as well as public baths, comprising an urban landscape whose organization and emphasis on comfort is surprisingly modern.

The Antique Vineyard
It regroups more than 300 vines and 15 different varieties listed among the oldest in France. The varieties implanted on the site in April 2007 come from an experimental unit of the Domaine de Vassal (Hérault Department), which holds the national and international collection of INRA (National Institute of Agronomical Research) vines. The choice of vine plants was conducted by Michel Bouvier, wine historian, and Thierry Lacombe, engineer and Domaine coordinator. The varieties whose origin is particularly old include: Inzolia, Savagnin, Mondeuse Noire, Barbera, small-seed Muscat, Gouais, Petit Verdot, Silvestris, Cabernet Franc, Malvasia di Sardegna, Petit Manseng, Rèze, Nebbiolo, Muscat d'Alexandrie, Grenache. Each vine is cultivated according to the characteristics that define its growth. The feet of the vine are presented according to six models of growth known during the Roman era:  growth in cover, goblet, curtain, vertical cord, trellis, or shrub. This project is particularly appropriate in a region where viticulture, which has its roots in an ancient regional tradition, is highly present. (Vineyards of Côtes-Rôties and Condrieu)

The Roman Garden
Plants played a central role in the everyday life of the Gallo-Romans: aromatic plants (used in the production of wine), edible and medicinal plants, tinctorial plants...  To allow the public to discover the usage of plants in the Antique era, an aromatic garden boasting more than a hundred varieties was created. Several examples of the plants found in the aromatic garden : bay leaf, blackberry, buffalo grass, bugloss, caraway, celery, coriander, cumin, dill, fenugreek, flax, garlic, gentian, hyssop, iris, laurel bay, lovage, marjoram, mint, mustard, onion, oregano, parsley, poppy, rue, savory, thyme, valerian, verbena...

Reconstructed Potters' Kilns
In order to conduct analysis of the baking of common ceramic, two “naked flame” ovens were reconstructed and put into service. The construction of two “tube” ovens allowed a ceramic with brilliant red varnish, known as samian, to be obtained.

Map of Archaeological Site