Cultural
Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps
Charavines, France
Inscribed 2011
This cultural heritage site encompasses prehistoric pile dwelling (or stilt house) settlements located in the Alpine region, with Charavines in the Isère department representing one of the significant locations. The settlements date from around 5000 to 500 BCE and provide exceptional archaeological evidence of early agrarian societies in Europe. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2011 for its outstanding preservation of organic materials, including wood, textiles, and food remains, which are rarely found in archaeological contexts and offer unprecedented insight into prehistoric daily life. The waterlogged conditions in these Alpine lake and wetland environments created anaerobic circumstances that prevented decomposition, allowing for the survival of artifacts that would typically perish. The remains reveal important information about settlement patterns, construction techniques, subsistence practices, and social organization of prehistoric Alpine communities. The archaeological record from these sites contributes significantly to understanding the development of early European civilization and the adaptation of human populations to Alpine landscapes.
Location
Charavines, France
Inscription
2011
