Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Leoppidum de la Roque is a major archaeological site of the Iron Age, located on a 50 metre high rocky spur in Fabrègues, Herault. This strategic place, naturally protected by apics, overlooks the confluence of the Mosson and Coulazou. The excavations revealed remains of huts, ramparts and turrets, as well as a votive foyer decorated with Celtic motifs, attributed to the Volques Arecomiques, a Gallic people of the region.

The objects discovered since the 18th century, including decorated chenets, are now preserved at the archaeological museum of Lattes. These findings confirm the importance of the site as a stronghold and a place of worship. The oppidum illustrates the defensive architecture and religious practices of the Mediterranean Celts before Romanization.

Ranked a historic monument on November 4, 1960, the Roque's oppidum has been under study since the 1950s, notably by Jacques Audibert and Pierre Larderet. Their publications in specialized journals (such as Gallia or the Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française) document its role in the network of oppida Languedociens. The site remains a key testimony of the Gallic occupation in Occitanie.

The precise location, noted 5418 La Roque on the cadastre of Fabrègues (parks B 420, 426 to 442), is fully protected. Although the structures are now reduced to their foundations, the site offers an overview of fortification techniques and protohistoric urban planning. Available sources (Wikipedia, Monumentum, Merimée base) highlight its heritage and scientific interest.

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