More than 2,000 pottery fragments found in planned Swiss waste disposal site

More than 2,000 archaeological objects identified in Delémont Keystone-SDA

Excavations carried out by the Archaeology and Palaeontology Section of the Swiss canton of Jura have identified more than 2,000 objects in around twenty structures. Spread over an area of around 600 m2 on the site of the future Delémont waste disposal centre, they have been dated to between 1,050 and 650 BC.

The nearly 2,000 pottery fragments found, together with a few fragments of jewellery (bronze fibula, iron pin, bituminous shale bracelets), attest to the domestic nature of the occupation of the site, the canton of Jura said in a press release on Tuesday.

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In view of the shapes, decorations and manufacturing techniques of the ceramic vessels – which were assembled by hand – archaeologists believe that they belong to the Late Bronze Age (1,050-800 BC), or even the Early Iron Age (800-650 BC).

Further study will help pinpoint their dating and define their function, as well as establishing the first trade with the rest of Europe, which was sparsely populated at the time. The fragments of oil shale bracelets could have come from the Dorset region of southern England, where quarries for this material and workshops for the manufacture of this type of adornment existed during this period.

The Swiss government has recognised the importance of the site and has made a financial contribution to the excavations. The archaeological investigations will continue. The objects found, which are very fragile because of their age, will first be restored and consolidated before being reassembled and studied.

Adapted from French by DeepL/ac

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