Mont Bego by Jules Masson Mourey
Séminaire de l'EHESS "Construire l'histoire du handicap et de la surdité", 2023
Les hautes vallées de la région du mont Bego, dans les Alpes méridionales, abritent un très impor... more Les hautes vallées de la région du mont Bego, dans les Alpes méridionales, abritent un très important corpus d’images rupestres de la Préhistoire récente (IVe-IIe millénaire avant J.-C.). Parmi ces milliers de gravures, quatre anthropomorphes au moins, attribués au Néolithique final, partagent une singularité : leurs pieds sont tournés vers l’intérieur. L’anomalie anatomique n’est pas sans rappeler la pathologie du pied bot varus équin bilatéral. Si l’hypothèse d’identification est exacte, et sachant le contexte qui accompagne ces représentations – à savoir l’accomplissement de la métallurgie du cuivre dans le nord de l’Italie et le sud de l’arc alpin –, il faudrait peut-être distinguer là les plus anciennes occurrences des affections orthopédiques dont souffrent, par nature, les forgerons mythologiques.
Bulletin du Musée d’Anthropologie Préhistorique de Monaco, 2021
Les Nouvelles de l'Archéologie, 2021
The high valleys of the Mount Bego region, in the Southern Alps, shelter a very important corpus ... more The high valleys of the Mount Bego region, in the Southern Alps, shelter a very important corpus of rock art from Recent Prehistory (IV-II millennium B.C.). Among these thousands of engravings, at least four anthropomorphic figures, attributed to the Final Neolithic, share a singularity: their feet are turned inward. The anatomical anomaly evokes the pathology of the bilateral clubfoot. If the identification hypothesis is correct, and knowing the context that accompanies these representations – namely the achievement of copper metallurgy in Northern Italy and in the Southern Alps –, maybe we should see there the oldest manifestations of the orthopedic affections from which, by nature, the mythological blacksmiths suffer.
Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française, 2020
Bilan Scientifique Régional PACA 2020, 2021
In : BAZZANELLA M., KEZICH G. (dir.), Shepherds Who Write. Pastoral graffiti in the uplands of Europe from prehistory to the modern age, British Archaeological Reports, International Series, S2999, 2020
In this article, we present an overview of the explanation of the main proposals about the prehis... more In this article, we present an overview of the explanation of the main proposals about the prehistoric engravings in the Mont Bego region. There are three kinds of hypothesis: that engravings were a sort of religious expression (it is, among others, the Bego God theory, popularised by Henry de Lumley et al.); that engravings were used to define pasturelands and to guide herds; and, lastly, that engravings were used to mark male rites of passage. A part of these works suffers from recurrent methodological gaps: poor quality recordings, neglect of the chronocultural context of the engravings and their diachrony, pre-eminence of the qualitative analyses upon quantitative analyses or unsuitable comparisons. However, in view of the intrinsic features of the site (isolated, difficult to access, inhospitable), of its vocation, a priori eminently pastoral since the Neolithic, together with some regional ethnographic comparisons, we support the idea that the act of engraving could have had the function of materialising the social promotion of young boys in summer pastures on the site during the prehistoric period.
Bilan scientifique régional PACA, 2018
International Newsletter On Rock Art, 2019
Religioznye verovanija čuvaš. Istoriko-ètnografičeskie očerki. Čeboksary : Čuvašskoe gosudarstven... more Religioznye verovanija čuvaš. Istoriko-ètnografičeskie očerki. Čeboksary : Čuvašskoe gosudarstvennoe izdatel'stvo. DEVLET E. & DEVLET M., 2005. -Mify v kamne: Mir naskal'nogo iskusstva Rossii. Moskva : Aleteia.
International Newsletter On Rock Art, 2019
coltivati a livello intensivo fra l'età del Bronzo Recente e Finale, come indicano oltre un centi... more coltivati a livello intensivo fra l'età del Bronzo Recente e Finale, come indicano oltre un centinaio di siti fusori attivi in zone di montagna, in qualche caso fino in alta quota. Dall'altro lato è stata registrata una frequentazione di siti d'altura in relazione alle pratiche culturali dei roghi votivi -Brandopferplätze -con attestazioni anche oltre i duemila metri di altitudine che coesistono con espressioni del culto in fondovalle. Il contributo si propone di presentare una sintesi su questi aspetti, focalizzando l'attenzione anche sulla presenza di elementi esotici in ceramica che, nel quadro della mobilità, indicano il superamento delle "frontiere" orizzontali, rappresentate dagli ambiti territoriali di facies e culture e di quelli verticali costituiti da rilievi e passi.
Poster, 2019
Nella regione del Monte Bego, le incisioni rupestri e i ripari sotto roccia frequentati durante l... more Nella regione del Monte Bego, le incisioni rupestri e i ripari sotto roccia frequentati durante la preistoria si situano ad alta quota, tra 2000 m et 2900 m d'altitudine. La regione, isolata e difficile di accesso, corrisponde alla bordura sud-est del massiccio cristallino dell'Argentera-Mercantour. Le 36 000 incisioni del sito, realizzate con tecnica a martellina, sono classificate in corniformi e aratri, armi, antropomorfi, figure geometriche e motivi non rappresentativi. Tuttavia il Monte Bego non si caratterizza esclusivamente per le sue rocce incise, ma anche per la presenza di numerose strutture in pietra a secco, il cui utilizzo a fini pastorali non esclude un possibile legame con l'attività incisoria. Lo studio del materiale archeologico rinvenuto all'interno di tali strutture ha permesso di mettere in evidenza una sequenza cronologica che dal Neolitico antico arriva fino alle porte della storia, riconoscibile attraverso assemblaggi litigi e ceramici che evocano le attività economiche dei primi pastori delle Alpi (Progetto Eticalp-Direzione : D. Binder). Le rappresentazioni incise sembrano anch'esse confermare la tradizione pastorale del sito : i motivi « topografici » (prima metà del IV millennio a.C.), ad esempio, sono distribuiti lungo le drailles (sentieri pastorali di origine antica utilizzati ad oggi dai pastori moderni) (Huet, Bianchi 2016) e trovano riscontri formali con i ripari frequentati durante la preistoria. Le grandi composizioni di corniformi in fila sono anch'esse localizzate lungo i sentieri pastorali, probabile simbolo del gregge che sale verso l'alpeggio (Bianchi 2016). Mettendo a punto un sistema di transumanza estiva, l'uomo neolitico sembra quindi aver dato vita a una produzione simbolica e rituale in parallelo al suo adattamento in ambito alpino. Le incisioni rupestri diventano in questo modo testimonianza di pratiche sociali, tra le quali quella del pastoralismo è valorizzata dalla preistoria fino a tempi a noi molto vicini. Durante il XIX et XX secolo ad esempio, più di mille testi sono stati incisi durante la transumanza estiva, da pastori originari di Tenda (Giusto-Magnardi 1996): si tratta di bambini, adolescenti o giovani adulti maschi, per i quali « l'atto di incidere riveste una funzione che iscrive il giovane uomo nel suo nuovo ruolo e ne sancisce la promozione sociale » (Magnardi, Breteau 2005, p. 73). È verosimile quindi che anche i primi incisori del Monte Bego siano stati dei giovani pastori che, incidendo, hanno celebrato il proprio « rito di passaggio » all'età adulta (Masson Mourey, Bianchi in stampa).
Préhistoires Méditerranéennes , 2018
L'art rupestre préhistorique de la région du mont Bego, inscrit entre les mondes alpin et méditer... more L'art rupestre préhistorique de la région du mont Bego, inscrit entre les mondes alpin et méditerranéen, au carrefour du Piémont italien, de la Ligurie, de la Provence et de la vallée du Rhône, suscite depuis plus d'un siècle de vifs échanges entre spécialistes quant à son interprétation. La représentation des pieds en rotation interne, qui caractérise trois gravures anthropomorphes majeures du site, est une iconographie rarissime, à toutes les époques et dans toutes les régions du monde. À travers l'analyse de cette singularité, nous proposons d'apporter une nouvelle contribution aux débats.
Mount Bego altitude site, in Alpes-Maritimes (France), is the second most important concentration... more Mount Bego altitude site, in Alpes-Maritimes (France), is the second most important concentration of prehistoric and protohistoric rock carvings in Western Europe, after the one of Valcamonica-Valtellina in Lombardy (Italy). Among some 35 000 of figurative signs currently listed (mostly corniforms, geometric figures and weapons), anthropomorphic – who had never been a specific study – account for just over 1%. Their role is nevertheless essential in most attempts at interpretating symbolic engravings. Archaeological and paleoenvironmental data indicate a human presence on the site since the Early Neolithic, and successive occupations fit quite well in the broader scheme of gradual colonization of the Alps by prehistoric and protohistoric human groups. We begin debating the identification of schematic anthropomorphic rock art and in terms of its representation at mount Bego. In addition, we establish an illustrated inventory of all anthropomorphic site (vol. II). An important chapter of the memory is dedicated to the periodization of human figures. Within the chronology of other engravings, where do the different anthropomorphic lie ? In essence, their realization appears to extend between the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. We finally end up with the introduction of a ethnoarchaeological reflection, both around anthropomorphic : what really represent these images ? what are their functions? – but also about the engravers : who are they? what relations do they have with human figures? The explanations of prehistoric imagery frequently draw from the religious-mythological repertoire. The socio-economic phenomena which also govern prove of comparable complexity.
Le site du mont Bego, dans les Alpes-Maritimes, constitue la deuxième plus importante concentrati... more Le site du mont Bego, dans les Alpes-Maritimes, constitue la deuxième plus importante concentration de gravures rupestres préhistoriques et protohistoriques en Europe, après l’ensemble du Valcamonica-Valtellina en Lombardie. Parmi les quelques 35 000 signes figuratifs actuellement répertoriés, seuls 300 pétroglyphes environ s’apparentent à des représentations anthropomorphes. Malgré leur succès certain auprès du grand public et leur rôle majeur dans l’interprétation symbolique des gravures du site, les figurations humaines n’ont jamais fait l’objet d’une étude spécifique. Face à la diversité de ces représentations, nous nous sommes demandé comment définir clairement le terme « anthropomorphe » et avons établi un premier corpus d’images. Les plus anciennes occupations humaines de la région du mont Bego remontent vraisemblablement au Néolithique ancien et moyen et l’on considère aujourd’hui que certaines gravures pourraient éventuellement en être contemporaines. De l’autre côté de l’axe chronologique, les dernières gravures préhistoriques pourraient être de l’âge du Bronze moyen. Dans ce cadre temporel, où se situent les différentes figurations humaines ? C’est à cette question que nous avons voulu répondre, afin d’asseoir avec davantage de rigueur les prochaines démarches interprétatives qui pourraient être mises en place vis-à-vis des différents systèmes iconographiques du site.
Uploads
Mont Bego by Jules Masson Mourey
voit le développement de plusieurs cultures produisant des images
humaines caractérisées par des visages tatoués ou scarifiés. Ces groupes
comptent aussi parmi les premières communautés métallurgistes de
Méditerranée occidentale. Et si l’adoption et la diffusion des deux
pratiques avaient un lien ? L’hypothèse, qui demande à être confirmée,
pourrait renouveler notre connaissance des interactions entre les plus
anciennes sociétés forgeronnes du sud du Vieux Continent.
Their study dates back to the end of the 19th century and these monuments fully belong to the French, European and Mediterranean prehistorical "landscape". However, as no synthesis has ever been produced since the 1970’s, a complete analytical review of the available data was required. Besides, the contribution of a digital tool such as the Reflectance Transformation Imaging had to be tested.
A new systematic typology is established thereby, composed of eight styles of stelae: alpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon, zeta, eta and theta. Re-examination of finding contexts enables to clarify the chronology of these homogeneous iconographical entities which come one after another or stand along between 4600 and 2500 BC.
Internal comparisons, inspired from anthropological patterns, reveal a conceivable antagonism of two contemporaneous and neighbouring societies in the first half of the third millennium BC. The analogies observed elsewhere in Europe (especially in the south of the Iberian Peninsula) show the relevance of the anthropomorphic stelae as long-distance networks indicators.
Except their links to power and death, the nature and function of these objects still remain largely unknown. Nevertheless, they could take more part to the debates regarding the definition of regional Neolithic cultures.