Excavation of 63 ancient tombs, revealing the cremation custom of the Neolithic period

Archaeologists in France have excavated a Neolithic site containing 63 tombs and hundreds of structures and artifacts in human possession spanning some 4,000 years.

The site in Clermont-Ferrand, a city in the Auvergne region of central France, was discovered during construction in the 1980s.

However, it was not until the highway expansion project began in 2019 that archaeologists began excavating there, according to the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP).

One of many human graves found at the Neolithic site shows the dead placed in a folded position. (Photo: National Institute of Preventive Archeology (INRAP)).

Radiocarbon dating revealed that humans arrived in the area before 6000 BC , during the Neolithic or Mesolithic period.

But most radiocarbon dating shows the site was in use throughout the Neolithic period. During this time, people began to create settlements and rely on agriculture; Some of the site's pottery, hearths, and excavations date from 4750 to 4500 BC.

The graves contained many people and cremation was customary

Archaeologists also discovered many different tombs, mostly simple tombs without furniture. In these pits, the deceased were buried in a 'folded position' , lying on their side, with their knees bent.

However, researchers have found some tombs built with dry stone (stones stacked on top of each other and without mortar) that were likely covered by mounds of earth. These tombs have complex arrangements, sometimes containing multiple people, and date from the fifth millennium BC.

The research team also found pits or tombs made from long stone slabs. It seems that at this time people no longer lived at this site but used it as a burial site.

By the fourth millennium BC, the practice of cremation had been adopted , demonstrated in two separate graves containing cremated ashes.