archaeologist at the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research ( Inrap ) have unveil what they describe as an " unprecedented " memorial in Marliens , near Dijon , France .
dig the site , the squad found artefact from the Neolithic age to theIron Age , include flint arrowhead , an archer ’s brace , and a fuzz alloydagger .
The oldest occupation of the situation is the most intriguing , as it include the unknown monument , key as an 8 - metre ( 26 - foot ) long " horseshoe " enclosure attached to a circular natural enclosure 11 m ( 36 feet ) in diam , and another open enclosure attached to that . concord to the squad , layers of gravel in the side enclosure show the bearing of structures , and all three of the enclosures seem to be from the same time period .
These arrowheads, braces, flint lighter, and dagger constituted the “panoply” that would have been carried by an archer.Image courtesy of Inrap, © Pauline Rostollan, Inrap
" This case of memorial seems unprecedented and currently no comparison has been potential , " Inrap explain in apress waiver . " The geological dating still remains uncertain , however the only artifacts see in the ditch correspond to cut flint which would suggest a chrono - cultural attribution to the Neolithic period . "
The team is conductingradiocarbon analysis , which assess the age of any formerly living aim by measuring how much carbon-14 has crumble in its eubstance after death , to get a better picture of when the monument was build .
Elsewhere at the site , the squad found several H. G. Wells dating from theBronze Age , the only grounds of settlement from that period . A necropolis dated from between 1500 BCE and 1300 BCE by the presence of cop alloy pins and an amber necklace was also fall upon , though the acidity of the land think that no complete burial has been establish by the team .
An ancient bracelet found at the site of a cremation.Image courtesy of Inrap, © Luc Staniaszek, Inrap
While intriguing , we do n’t yet know incisively when the monument was from . Carbon dating and further survey will hopefully provide more clues to this unearthly , potentially very ancient memorial and , perhaps , its design .
