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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Châtelard, also known as the Castellar oppidum, is a protohistoric site located in the commune of Courzieu, in the Rhône department (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes). Occupied from the Tene III (iron age) and then reinvested in the Gallo-Roman era, it is distinguished by its enclosure of stones delimiting a space of 45 × 51 meters at the top of a wooded hill. Its altitude of 882 metres, on the foothills of the Twin Mountains, makes it a strategic point for territorial control.

Archaeological excavations, carried out from the beginning of the 20th century by Dugas, then between 1963 and 1975 by L. Jeancolas and J. Reymond, revealed a discontinuous occupation: from the middle and final Bronze to the Gallo-Roman period. Major discoveries include sigillated ceramics (I–II century), typical of Romanization in Gaul, as well as remains of houses protected by ramparts. Debate persists on its exact function (refuge, place of worship or permanent habitat).

Ranked a historic monument in 1989, the oppidum is locally known as the Gallic doppidum. Its toponym, Châtelard, derives from the Franco-Provençal Castellar (small castle), reflecting medieval linguistic corruption. The objects exhumed, preserved and studied shed light on the cultural exchanges between Celtes and Romans in this border region between the territories of Ségusiaves and Eduans.

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