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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The temple of Treguzel, also called the temple of Trogouzel, is a Celtic and then Gallo-Roman fanum whose ruins were discovered in the 19th century near Ploare, in Douarnenez (Finistry). This archaeological site, occupied by the Iron Age, houses four successive cultural buildings, the last of which – a monumental temple with octagonal cella – was abandoned in the late fourth century. Its remains, classified in 1980, reflect a continuous occupation since the 2nd century BC.

The bay of Douarnenez, a major pole of salt, salt and garum production in Roman times, was crossed by a dense network of tracks, including an east-west road linking Quimper to Cape Sizun. The temple of Trogouzel, located to the north of this way, is part of a larger archaeological complex, revealed by abundant furniture. Three ancient temples were identified around the bay, but only Trogouzel remains today.

The first excavations, conducted in 1894 by Maurice Halna du Fretay, proposed an erroneous reconstruction of the temple, with a rectangular cella surrounded by a circular gallery. Research resumed between 1978 and 1984 under the direction of Michel Clément, who corrected this plan: the cella, probably octagonal and of great size (40 to 45 m with its gallery), was dated from the Flavian era (end of the first century). Geophysical prospections in 2018 confirmed this plan and revealed an ancient path along the temple, as well as traces of occupation since the 2nd century BC.

The site experienced four architectural states: a Latenian wooden building (fired at the end of the 2nd century BC), two Julio-Claudian masonry temples (Augustian then the 40s-90s), and finally the monumental Flavian temple, abandoned after the 4th century. The currencies of Constance II (mid-fourth century) attest to a late reoccupation. After his abandonment, the stones of the temple were systematically recovered.

Ranked a historic monument on January 28, 1980, the temple of Trogouzel illustrates the importance of shrines in the Roman Gaul, as well as the evolution of cultural and architectural practices between the Iron Age and Late Antiquity. His study provided a better understanding of the region's religious and economic dynamics, linked to saliculture and maritime trade.

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