Overview
- Archaeologists working since February uncovered a roughly 20‑metre stone-and-wood rampart buried about four metres deep in the Hôtel‑Dieu hospital courtyard on the Île de la Cité.
- Early carbon‑14 results date charred wooden elements to about 200–10 BC, a timeframe that includes the 52 BC Battle of Lutetia described in Caesar’s Gallic Wars.
- The wall’s construction of large stone blocks with an interlocking beam system and a Gallic spearhead found at its base match features expected of a Parisii oppidum.
- Teams say the remains are severely fire‑damaged and fragile, so they plan detailed 3D photogrammetry, selective removal of original elements, and later reconstruction rather than preserving the wall in place.
- Officials call the discovery a major archaeological breakthrough because it could resolve the long debate over whether Lutetia was centered on the Île de la Cité rather than in suburban Nanterre, and further analysis will test that claim.