Excavations reveal the history of Reims Chapter Square

Several places in the city of Reims are or will be reformed, such as the Place du Chapter. Carefully and located a stone’s throw from Notre-Dame, it has its name thanks to the chapter of Reims, a real city within the city that was previously reserved for the canons of the cathedral. There was an entrance through two doors, one of which can still be seen today, in rue Carnot, at the entrance to the site that interests us today.
Before putting cars out, greening the place and highlighting the heritage of the Place du Chapter by the end of 2025, an archaeological excavation is underway. The first stage, which took place in the center of the area, ended on Wednesday night. It revealed two chalk and stone buildings “that could be connected to a 16th-century chapter prison, a concentration area for cannons”, explained Baptiste Panouillot, an archaeologist from Grand Reims.

His teams have gone down to 2.50 meters underground, but they will not go lower, even if “we know below, that there are probably ancient luxury residences, ‘domus’, on the good preservation,” explained the scientist, forced to follow the archaeological order. set by the State. It is always difficult to stop, but there is a balance to be found between modern development and archaeological research. »
After a week of backfilling, a second phase is planned for the areas next to the Place du Chapter. A third phase, on a small part of rue Robert-de-Courcy, will complete these excavations before the beginning of November.