“See archeology as you would go to the bakery”: in Noisy-le-Grand, a necropolis in the city center

Messy hair and dusty shoes, Cyrille Le Forestier overflows with vitality. Playing the tightrope walk above the skeletons of the important Mastraits necropolis of Noisy-le-Grand (Seine-Saint-Denis), the archaeologist from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap) cannot sit still. “12 minutes break,” he tells his teams, between two jokes.

Then, seeing a small group of regulars crowding around the barriers surrounding his workplace, the 50-year-old man’s eyes sparkled. “Here he remains a pair of legs to search, he said, pointing to a digging. If you’re missing some, don’t hesitate to help yourself. » The observers are laughing and Cyrille Le Forestier sets off again with determined steps towards the Marcel-Bou House for All, left available to researchers during the month of June.

Skeletons from the Merovingian era in the middle of the street

Under a tent where other archaeologists are typing on their computers, the fifty-year-old grabs a cup and pours a thick coffee into it. “This is one of the specificities of this project: everything is digital, he explains. The archaeologists who carry out the excavations enter their data on a smartphone or tablet and, thanks to a server, it arrives directly here. This allows you to have clean notes. There are no papers on the site. »

After taking a generous sip, Cyrille Le Forestier heads towards an adjacent tent, which houses a educational excavation module designed by the Association of Necropolis Archeology (ADN). “What is extremely rare is that the necropolis is located in the city center. Beyond the scientific aspect of our publications, our mission is therefore to return this heritage to local people, to make archeology affordable. »

Crossing rue des Mastraits to return to the site, the archaeologist greets several local residents who know him. “In June, we generally have 1000 children on the site. Volunteers also make visits. We want to trivialize the matter, so that it is like going to the bakery,” he argues.

On the occasion of European Archeology Days (June 14 -16, 2024), managed by Inrap, under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture, numerous activities will be offered there. From an introduction to anthropology to guided tours, including readings of Merovingian tales.

A necropolis of several thousand tombs

Employed at Inrap since 2002, the man with the shaggy beard took part in the first excavation of the necropolis in 2007. “It’s interesting because there is territorial monitoring, people know me, we really do part of the city,” he comments.

And to continue: “There is also scientific monitoring, since I have been there from the start. We have discovered nearly 900 burials from the eras of the Merovingians and Carolingians [de 500 à 1200, dit-il]. And what’s fascinating is that they are very well preserved. We are used to seeing the clothes of the kings of France, but here it is the people, the ‘real people’. We can determine age, sex, relationships, etc. This provides information on demographics. There are also belt buckles, pearl necklaces and very beautiful sarcophagi which allow us to understand how people work at the time. »

Even if certain urban developments do not allow us to be certain, the Mastraits necropolis could bring together nearly 5,000 gravesaccording to the Eastern Paris specialist.

An in-depth analysis of this atypical place in the Paris region should be the subject ofa current book 2026. “That’s the whole point of our work: producing material for researchers. We publish regularly, but a book can reach as many people as possible, while providing important scientific data. »

Practical information
European Archeology Days, June 15 and 16, 2024
2 rue des Mastraits, in Noisy-le-Grand

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