Discovered in the 1850s by a teacher, this Gallo-Roman site in Seine-et-Marne was selected as an “emblematic” project for the 2023 edition of the heritage lottery. This game worn by Stéphane Bern aims to raise funds to renovate and restore monuments in danger.
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The “emblematic” project of the Île-de-France region selected as part of the sixth edition of the 2023 heritage is the archaeological site of Châteaubleau (Seine-et-Marne), announced this Thursday the “Heritage at risk” mission. Located 30 km from Coulommiers, this site includes several structures dating from the Gallo-Roman era, but also ceramics, crafts and other objects. There are two “exceptional remains“: a Gallo-Roman theater and a spring sanctuary.
“The file was registered by the association La Riobé, which has been working on the site for 70 years, says Hervé Lancelot, Ile-de-France regional delegate at the Heritage Foundation. The site was discovered somewhat by chance in the 1850s by a teacher who saw his students bring him excavation products. He went back to Châteaubleau and carried out the first excavations. But it was especially from the 1960s that much more extensive and organized excavations were launched.“
The water sanctuary. • © Heritage Foundation – La Riobé Association
The site belongs to the community of communes of Brie Nangissienne. Note that the theater has been “listed” as a historical monument since 1983. The sanctuary is “registered” there. Cracks, deformations linked to water infiltration, collapse of walls and vaults…”The remains of the theater are in danger“, warns the Bern mission.
“It’s an archaeological site, a lot of things that were underground are weakened, explains Hervé Lancelot. We will have to consolidate the remains of the theater and the sanctuary, there is a real urgency. It will be necessary to carry out work to ensure its proper conservation, with in particular the stabilization of the masonry. The idea will also be to give visitors an idea of what the site was originally, by partially restoring what the theatre, for example, could have been.“The work, which should begin in February 2024 and end in March 2025, is announced”techniques“.
“A file fairly typical of the Ile-de-France heritage variety”
The amount of the endowment from which Châteaubleau will benefit will be announced a few days before the next European Heritage Days, on September 16 and 17. As part of each edition of the heritage lotto, 18 “emblematic” projects are selected in total for all metropolitan regions and overseas communities. One project per department, which will be announced between the end of August and the beginning of September, has also been selected.
Initially, applications are submitted on Bern mission website, then they are instructed by the Heritage Foundation, before an examination by the Ministry of Culture and heritage support associations. The projects are finally selected by a committee chaired by Stéphane Bern and made up of representatives of the Heritage Foundation, the Française des jeux and the Ministry of Culture.
Archaeological site of Châteaubleau • © Ludovic Delage
“The support revenue comes from part of the amount that is normally devolved to the State in the lottery draw, which takes place during the week of Heritage Days, specifies Hervé Lancelot. There are also draw games, which last on average until November-December.“
According to the regional delegate, Châteaubleau is “a fairly typical record of the heritage variety“Paris region, beyond”sites that first come to mind when you think of Île-de-France, such as the estate of Versailles, Vincennes or Fontainebleau“.
The archaeological site of Châteaubleau • © Brie Nangissienne community of municipalities
Hervé Lancelot also cites the other “emblematic” projects selected during previous editions of the lottery, launched in 2018: the Villa Viardot in Bougival (Yvelines), the Rosa-Bonheur workshop museum in Thomery (Seine-et-Marne ), the Fort of Cormeilles (Val-d’Oise), the Stables of Richelieu in Gennevilliers (Hauts-de-Seine) and finally the Church of Saint-Louis in Villemomble (Seine-Saint-Denis). “The most advanced files are the Villa Viardot, which will probably open this summer, with a music center in particular, and the Rosa-Bonheur workshop, he notes. But overall it can take time. Once the file has been launched, there is everything to do. And faced with the state of danger, it is necessary to carry out consolidations before the renovation or restoration work.“
And while Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, president of the National Gaming Authority (ANJ), pointed out during a hearing in the Senate in early February a risk of “problematic trivialization of gambling“when the FDJ’s advertising strategy mobilizes”consensual issues of general interest“As with the heritage lotto, Hervé Lancelot responds to criticism:”The campaign on scratch games will be shortened. Before, it lasted until stocks were exhausted. So, we take into account the regulator. But for all that, the problem of games and addictions obviously precedes the heritage lotto.“
The archaeological site of Châteaubleau. • © Heritage Foundation – Sarl Abdpa Architecture
The regional delegate draws a positive assessment of the system: “There were questions, but the heritage lotto is part of the landscape. There is a driving effect beyond the work, it serves to get people talking about heritage and to make it visible. At the national level, 230 million euros have made it possible to help the various works since 2018. There is the lottery grant, but there are also public funds which have been increased, and finally collections from the population as well as sponsorships.“
In Île-de-France, the system has helped a total of 48 sites for their work since 2018. “Today, more than 54% have already been saved or are about to be saved: 8 projects have been completed and 18 are in progress.“, says the mission “Heritage in danger”.
Lorient Interceltic Festival
The big parade, the interceltic night, … Throughout the festival, receive our daily newsletter on the news of the event.
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