Renovation Project Reveals 38 Medieval Skeletons in Paris Basement

A man living in the Paris suburb of Corbeil-Essonnes was working on a renovation of his basement when he unearthed something chilling. It was the remains of what was clearly an ancient human skeleton, which had apparently been buried directly below the site where his home had been constructed many centuries following this individual’s death.

The French homeowner contacted the authorities to report what he had discovered, and it was quickly concluded that his find was archaeologically significant. Researchers from the Regional Archaeology Service of Île-de-France were soon dispatched to the site to launch an official exploration, and what they ultimately recovered exceeded their wildest expectations.

During a series of excavations carried out by Archeodunum in four separate sections of the basement, covering 560 square feet (52 square meters) of floor space, the archaeologists unearthed 38 skeletons, 10 of which were encased in plaster sarcophagi typical of early medieval burials. The remainder were buried in less elaborate wooden coffins placed inside pits, indicating that they’d lived and died in an earlier period.

Plan of the remains in the cellar by Archeodunum. (Archeodunum)

Incredibly, the archaeologists have determined that the various skeletons were buried in this one location over the course of seven centuries, specifically from the third through the 10th centuries AD. All were well preserved, as the residence built above them had protected them from being disturbed by human beings or the elements.

A Medieval Cemetery with Much More Ancient Roots

While the scale of the discovery was impressive, this was not an unprecedented find in the Montconseil neighborhood in Corbeil-Essonnes. Since the 19th century several other sarcophagi with bodies inside have been found during excavations carried out not far from the newly discovered skeletons. So archaeologists already knew there was a medieval cemetery in the area, which they had assumed was connected to the Notre-Dame-des-Champs chapel that was constructed on nearby land over the top of an ancient pagan temple in the seventh century AD.

But what has just been discovered shows the site was first used as a cemetery several centuries before this chapel was built. Its earliest skeletons date back to before the medieval period into late antiquity, meaning the chapel was constructed near the burial ground rather than the other way around. 

Most of the graves were arranged in parallel rows. But the plaster sarcophagi were aligned in a fan-like shape. This indicates some notable changes in local burial practices over time. It was during the early Middle Ages, around the end of the fifth century, that plaster sarcophagi first came into usage. Since there were only 10 of these in the basement space, it means most of the burials came from the earlier part of the period when the cemetery was in use.

Most sarcophagi were parallel like this. (Archeodunum)

The sarcophagi possessed some interesting characteristics. For one thing, they were not decorated with religious symbology the way most others made during this period were. For another, each only contained one body, which varied from the normal practice of constructing them to hold multiple deceased individuals.

One of the sarcophagi was covered with a stone block, some of which had been broken off. While this curious addition is incomplete, the archaeologists have been able to identify some images engraved on it, including a Latin cross, a rosette, and a cross inside a circle. Such motifs were common on plaster sarcophagi in the medieval period, and researchers can only guess why they were added to a stone block covering in this instance instead of being put directly on the coffins.

The tombs are the subject of a detailed drawing. (Archeodunum)

Studying a Cultural Crossroads Where Burial Practices Evolved

The newly recovered skeletons date back to the time when the territory of modern-day France was occupied first by the Gauls, a continental Celtic people, the Roman conquerors who supplanted them, and the Franks who arose to power in the medieval period. The different cultures that lived in France and the surrounding regions of western Europe all had an influence on developments in the region, and this may be reflected in the changes in burial practices observed in the ancient cemetery in Corbeil-Essonnes.

Moving forward, the archaeologists responsible for finding the skeletons in the suburban basement space will be analyzing their discoveries more closely in a laboratory setting. They will be performing a series of tests on these ancient human remains, to determine the genders, ages, and health and living conditions of the deceased. They will be further studying the characteristics of the burials to see if they can link changes in funerary practices to the specific peoples that were living in the Paris area between 1,700 and 1,000 years ago. They may also seek to expand their excavations into new areas around the residence where the 38 burials were found, since it is likely that the cemetery extended for quite some distance from this point.

Top image: Skeletons in the cellar in Corbeil-Essonnes.    Source: Archeodunum

By Nathan Falde