A technical adaptation? Shell dye extraction on the eve of the roman conquest in Gaul (Port-Blanc, Hoedic island, France)

• Published in: Paléo
• Main Authors: Dupont, Catherine, Baudry, Anna, Daire, Marie-Yvane, Barillé, Laurent
• Other Authors: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Centre de Recherche en Archéologie, Archéosciences, Histoire (CReAAH), Le Mans Université (UM)-Université de Rennes (UR)-Université de Rennes 2 (UR2)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Ministère de la Culture (MC)-Nantes Université - UFR Histoire, Histoire de l'Art et Archéologie (Nantes Univ - UFR HHAA), Nantes Université - pôle Humanités, Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université - pôle Humanités, Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université (Nantes Univ), Comité des travaux historiques et scientifiques (CTHS), Ministère de l'Education nationale, de l’Enseignement supérieur et de la Recherche (M.E.N.E.S.R.)-École nationale des chartes (ENC), Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL), GIS d’Histoire & Sciences de la mer, Institut national de recherches archéologiques préventives (Inrap), Institut Des Substances et Organismes de la Mer - UR 2160 (ISOMER), Nantes Université - UFR des Sciences Pharmaceutiques et Biologiques (Nantes Univ - UFR Pharmacie), Nantes Université - pôle Santé, Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université - pôle Santé, Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes université - UFR des Sciences et des Techniques (Nantes univ - UFR ST), Nantes Université - pôle Sciences et technologie, Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)-Nantes Université - pôle Sciences et technologie, Nantes Université (Nantes Univ)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2023
• Subjects: Iron Age Romans dog whelks murex dye shell archaeomalacology maritime archaeology island protohistory; Iron Age; Romans; dog whelks; murex; dye; shell; archaeomalacology; maritime archaeology; island; protohistory; [SHS]Humanities and Social Sciences; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; Dog whelk; Nucella lapillus
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-04322746; https://hal.science/hal-04322746/document; https://hal.science/hal-04322746/file/1.08%20DUPONT%20144-161.pdf; https://doi.org/10.4000/paleo.8114

International audience Islands are variously interpreted either as areas closed in on themselves or open to different horizons, depending on the point of view. Excavations at the Port-Blanc site, on Hoedic Island, dated to the Iron Age, record both these aspects in the northwest of France, from the Middle La Tène to theend of the Final La Tène. They shed light on the evolution of this settlement, from its installation to its abandonment. The inclusion of faunal remains from the outset of the excavation allows to describe a varied exploitation of animals, including mammals, fish, birds, crustaceans and marine molluscs.The latter are the subject of this article. The sampling protocol implemented at the time of excavation revealed a rarely equalled diversity of marine invertebrates in archaeology along the European Atlantic coast. This variety is linked to the multiple origins of these shellfish. The malacofaunal spectrum of small species (< 10 mm), composed of juvenile to adult individuals, points to aeolian transport with algae during storms for some of them. Others were indeed processed by the occupants of Port-Blanc. Two uses are highlighted: food and dyeing. The first implies the consumption of limpets, followed by mussels, thick top shells and European clams. The second is the exploitation of the dog whelk Nucella lapillus and the murex and oyster drill Ocenebra erinaceus. The proportions of these species vary along with the different phases of occupation of Port-Blanc. The beginning of the occupation in the Middle La Tène indicates an intentional exploitation of the low foreshore levels by the presence of the Ocenebra erinaceus. This species identified at Port-Blanc is the French Atlantic murex, which is most similar in appearance to the flagship species of Mediterranean purple dye production: Hexaplex trunculus. We thus postulate a possible technical transfer of this high added value activity via Mediterranean influences. This scenario is compared to other archaeological and historical data. In the ...