Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Madeleine shelter, located in Tursac, Dordogne, is an emblematic paleolithic archaeological deposit, the eponymous site of the Magdalenian. He delivered objects of furniture art, including an engraved mammoth defense discovered in 1864 by Édouard Lartet and Henry Christy, confirming the coexistence of Man and missing species. The site also revealed a child's burial, about 10,000 years old, richly adorned with shells, mixing Magdalenian and Azilian influences.

The successive excavations, carried out notably by Denis Peyrony (1910-1926) and Jean-Marc Bouvier (1968-1988), consolidated its scientific importance. Ranked a historic monument in 1956, it is one of the 15 prehistoric sites of the Vézère valley registered with UNESCO since 1979, highlighting its key role in understanding Prehistory.

The site was also occupied in the Middle Ages, as early as the ninth century, as a troglodytic semi-creuse village in the cliff. A Romanesque and Gothic church, dedicated to Sainte Marie-Madeleine, was built there between the 11th and 12th centuries, while a castle (Petit Marzac), probably built between the 11th and 14th centuries, dominated the site. A common 12th century oven, still in use today, bears witness to medieval daily life.

The Château de Petit Marzac, attributed to the Counts of Sireuil and then to the Beynac, presents a hybrid architecture: a Saint-Martin tower and defensive elements dated from the 14th century, contrasting with an older masonry. Fired in 1660, it illustrates the evolution of military techniques. The seigneurial chapel, mixing Romanesque and Gothic styles, reinforces the unique character of this site with its dual heritage, prehistoric and medieval.

In 2023, the Madeleine's shelter was used as a setting for scenes from the Fortune series of France, highlighting its spectacular setting and multi-year history.

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