Over 2,000-year-old wall found beneath Paris may rewrite the city's origins
Archaeologists on Paris's Île de la Cité have uncovered a wall that may belong to the Gallic settlement of Lutetia, potentially settling a centuries-old debate about the city's origins. Excavations at the site have been ongoing since February.
Excavations that began in February on the grounds of Paris's oldest operating hospital, Hôtel-Dieu, on the Île de la Cité near Notre-Dame Cathedral, have produced a find that could resolve a centuries-old dispute over the origins of the French capital.
Over the summer, researchers uncovered a roughly 20-meter-long stone-and-wood wall whose construction matches Gallic fortifications from the late Iron Age. A Gallic spearhead was also found near the wall, and preliminary dating of wood samples suggests they may date from between 200 and 10 BCE.
Traces of a major fire
Of particular interest are signs of an intense fire — burned wall fragments, charred seeds, and the remains of a burned wooden building found at the site. This aligns with events described by Julius Caesar in 52 BCE, when the Gallic Parisii tribe reportedly burned their own fortified settlement as Roman forces approached.
A centuries-old debate
Caesar described the settlement of Lutetia as located on an island in the Seine, which long led to the belief that it stood on what is now the Île de la Cité. However, without conclusive archaeological evidence, an alternative theory emerged suggesting Lutetia may have been located elsewhere, such as present-day Nanterre.
France's Ministry of Culture says further research is needed and it is too early to draw final conclusions. However, if confirmed as part of the Gallic Lutetia's fortifications, the wall would become the most significant physical evidence to date that Paris's origins lie on the Île de la Cité. The find has already been deemed particularly significant, and part of the wall is planned to be reconstructed and eventually displayed in a Paris museum.
