Le Pays d’Arles | Un Écrin de Culture dans le Sud de la France | Trésors du Patrimoine

Pendant deux ans, Stéphane Bégoin a suivi l’aventure de Sabrina Marlier. En compagnie de son équipe d’archéologues et de restaurateurs, elle a oeuvré pour sortir des eaux du Rhône la plus grande barge antique jamais renflouée.

Amoureux de la France et du patrimoine, ses trésors n’auront plus de secrets pour vous 👉https://bit.ly/4dnI1h1

La ville d’Arles compte aussi des joyaux d’architecture médiévale, comme l’ancienne cathédrale Saint-Trophime. Depuis quelques années, la ville a également lancé l’un des plus vastes inventaires du patrimoine, à la recherche de vestiges du Moyen Age. Plus loin, dans les Alpilles, Cyril Dumas, conservateur et amateur d’alpinisme, s’attache à découvrir les traces d’occupation humaine. En face des Baux-de-Provence, Pascal Bourgier, quant à lui, exploite la carrière de Sarragan.

“Le pays d’Arles”
Un documentaire de la collection Des Racines et des Ailes, écrit et réalisé par Stéphane Bégoin.
© ECLECTIC PRODUCTION
Tout droits réservés – AMP

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A few kilometers from Arles and the Rhône valley, stands a vast space sculpted by nature: Les Alpilles. These impressive limestone cliffs dominate the entire plain and the olive fields all the way to the Camargue. This is the country of Arles. The city is famous for its ancient monuments. It is called the little Rome of the Gauls But under these roofs, the city shelters a little-known heritage, A treasure hidden randomly in the streets Jean Marc Bernard is responsible for carrying out an inventory of all these riches. “The richness of the Arlesian heritage is such! I have never found a city where there is so much wealth piled up from all eras… Of all natures. It’s truly a fascinating city for those who love buildings and are of extraordinary quality. * Is this a declaration of love? * Totally! Totally! He is the great love of my life. Finally one of the loves of my life. » To discover these traces of the city’s history, Jean Marc climbs onto the terraces of the church of the preachers. From the roof of this building, the view of the old town is spectacular “From here we can see almost the entire heart of the protected sector, that is to say, of the ancient walled city. It can be taken as a treasure hunt, that is to say that there we can try to analyze what we see here we have a tower from the 5th century, included in the current building and it is a construction that we see from nowhere and this is truly how we can define the city of Arles, a tangle, an accumulation of buildings from all eras which end up giving this particular charm to this city. » This particular charm has been built over the centuries. The city was a Roman colony, then the prefecture of the Gauls, before becoming the residence of the first counts of Provence. A history inscribed in the city’s very plan “There we are on the Place de la République, it is the largest square in the city of Arles, well in the old center at least, and which is lined with emblematic monuments . There a large classic building which is the 17th century town hall, built during the reign of Louis XIV which includes a bell tower which gives its originality and which dates from the 16th century and we can also follow on the building, the disappearance of the royal emblems which had been placed there to the glory of Louis XIV and which after the revolution they attempted to remove. For example, here we have two winged figures which obviously did not surround the RF of the French Republic but the royal coat of arms. There on the first floor the two sphinxes surrounded by busts which have disappeared and at the very top of the pediment, the emblem of the royal face, of the sun king in his radiance, all that remains is the rays, the face has disappeared. » Arles also contains little-known evidence of its history. To preserve them, the city undertook the largest inventory ever carried out. Nearly 5,000 buildings to list! “We are going to discover some original places in the Arlesian landscape, there are some everywhere in the city of Arles, almost everywhere here is a 15th-16th century door that we can read in the masonry and everywhere in this city of ‘Arles we will find such things. » Here are Renaissance windows… There is a gargoyle in the shape of a mask…. And further on, an Indian face dating from the discovery of the Americas… The curiosities are just waiting to be discovered… But there are testimonies that are much more difficult to find. In this street, the Carmelite cloister stood in the Middle Ages. Jean Marc Bernard found vestiges hidden in the garage of this resident “And there you see in this sumptuous warehouse there is still the entire ceiling, with its ribs. These arcs formed on the sides… Which is intact eh. There we are on the old monastery fence with this wall of extraordinary thickness. And then there were buildings that came up against it. We can thus find the route of the old cloister in a treasure hunt inside the block. » But the most unexpected surprise is found in this bank branch! ” – Good morning ! * Good morning ! * Please come in. * THANKS. » Here, ten years ago, the impressive decorations of the Carmelite church were found. “There we are in the Assumption Chapel and the Scapular Chapel. It is a mortuary chapel which was built by Nicolas des Albert at the very end of the 16th century in memory of his wife. And then it’s sumptuous, a stone lace, an extraordinary sculpture. Naturally we now see it to its advantage. You have to imagine that it was a very short time ago, since the work dates back to 2002. There was an intermediate floor which divided this chapel in the direction of height, you see. So we couldn’t escape it at all. Which now allows us to judge the aesthetics of this splendid vault. » “ We knew that the Carmelite church existed, yes, there were important remains of the Carmelite church. But we were far from imagining that such important remains , and even this polychromy, could remain. It is an original polychromy. That’s really a surprise, and then the finesse of the sculptures was totally unsuspected” The restoration of this bank branch lasted two years. And as tradition allows, the artisan stonemason who renovated these chapels left traces of his passage. He had fun sculpting the face of Jean Marc himself! Among this profusion of ancient buildings, the city of Arles is home to a masterpiece of Roman art. A stone’s throw from the Roman amphitheater, the ancient St Trophime cathedral Built in the 12th century, it bears the name of the first bishop of the city. Its portal dates from the end of the 12th century. It is one of the largest sculpted groups of Romanesque art in Provence. Its restoration required seven years of work. “A curiosity also of this portal is that it represents many lions, there are not many lions in the region and there, all the earthly forces, the evil forces are represented by leonine creatures, in Latin “ixus leones” means the place where the danger is “here are the lions” and there, it meant the influence to us of earthly forces in relation to the redemption offered by the gospel » At the heart of the monument, the most famous cloister in Provence. Listed as a UNESCO world heritage site, it is one of the most beautiful constructions of its time. However, just two years ago, the splendor of the monument was threatened. “This cloister which has been mistreated over the years has reached a point of disrepair and filth which made it difficult to read, so restoration work was planned then undertaken and is now in progress, including the clearing of the capitals which reveal beautiful surprises » But the Romanesque and Gothic galleries of the cloister had not been restored since the 19th century and the finesse of the statues had disappeared, damaged by smoke and infiltration. The cloister is today the subject of much attention: Thanks to the help of an American foundation, the restorers have cutting-edge technology: a laser to clean the medieval capitals! “- Put on your glasses, young man… * Okay now » * It is a beam of light which peels off the black crust, but it can also peel off the retina. So it is imperative to have glasses with special lenses that block the laser beam. » “I’m taking off the safety, watch out for the glasses. » We hear the micro-explosions. There, we peel off the black crust, we arrive at a yellow layer. » This laser was used for the first time on the Acropolis of Athens. It allows impurities to be removed without attacking the patterns of the sculpture. “During our cleaning we discovered traces. For example, traces made with drypoint, traces of preparation for sculptures. There is definitely this intimacy with the people who made the sculptures. It’s great, that’s for sure. » It takes Agata on average a week to clean a single marquee… But the restoration of the cloister does not stop there. Some columns required additional work “- So where are you? * For the control zone? » On this partially cleaned capital, rainwater has deposited a crust of gray limestone which covers the white marble. “There is the crust, very thick, very granular with these two strata: Yellow… And gray. And we manage to liberate. It’s truly the liberation of the sculptures. There, we have a sheet that is no longer readable, and there, we manage to find edges. It’s the same for the detail of the braids of the dress which is still very beautiful, very well sculpted. The drapes * The marble underneath is healthy, very very healthy. * We even have the knuckles. » “The goal is not to touch the marble, to preserve the skin of the marble. And all its readability. And what is remarkable is to find the sculpture as it was 7 centuries ago. » A few months will still be necessary for the restorers to be able to restore the capitals and columns of the cloister of Saint Trophime to their original appearance. The city of Arles also owes its influence to the vast territory which surrounds it, a country of great diversity marked by three unique natural spaces: the Alpilles, the Crau country and the Baux de Provence marshes. In the Middle Ages, this territory was dominated by the Baux de Provence castle. one of the most impressive fortresses in France: Today, this village is one of the emblematic sites of the region. The castle, built between the 11th and 13th centuries, overlooks the entire plain. Throughout history, it has suffered a large number of sieges. And its builders had to find solutions to fight against the aggressors. On the mountainside, at the foot of the fortress, they dug a secret passage. Today, Cyril Dumas, the curator, is one of the only people who can borrow it. “Here we find ourselves in front of the secondary gate of the castle. You should know that in each castle there is very often a legend which evokes the story of a secret passage. In Les Baux, we have this chance, it is real, it exists. This passage is reserved of course for the owner of the premises, who went directly inside the castle by crossing, therefore, the mountain, through this very large tunnel. Which also allowed the man and his mount to pass. » This underground staircase was a tempting passage for possible invaders. But the attackers who risked it found themselves caught in a real trap. “If a person manages to evade the attention of the doormen and if he does not present the correct invitation, he risks suffering from stone throwing or other defensive weapons. » The passage indeed leads to this deep pit. The invaders are then at the mercy of the soldiers hidden in these watch posts. The powerful fortress has, however, been besieged many times. During these periods of insecurity, the peasants often had to take refuge in the numerous natural shelters, all around the rock of Les Baux “- Well whenever you want * Thierry it’s good” With two mountaineering friends, Cyril Dumas set out to explore these old caches, scattered throughout the Alpilles. “This type of outing simply allows me to make an inventory of all the traces and occupations that have taken place on the rock. This passion probably comes from childhood, I have a particularity, my grandparents are from Les Baux de Provence, so I was able to return to my native lands, this is what ultimately motivates me and excites my curiosity” Cyril has already visited around thirty shelters, some occupied since prehistoric times. The most impressive are on the Rocher des Baux itself. This one is one of the largest, it opens 15 meters above the void. In the Middle Ages, it was accessed with ladders. “There you go, this is where I wanted to take you, we are in a typical perched habitat with multiple traces of occupation. Here we have a wedging groove, probably for a wall. There are bolt holes for accommodate beams or a roof. Life here must have been very basic. You should first know that all the activities were outside. We can imagine activities linked to breeding or agriculture, or stone cutting. And in the evening the family returned to protect themselves in this rock shelter with Here an area which has been flattened, therefore a rest area and down there an area which evokes a cistern, a storage place for food. » In the 17th century, Richelieu put an end to the power of the lords of Baux who mocked the royal power. He brought down the ramparts and dismantled the most imposing buildings. Facing Les Baux de Provence, this landscape of rocks hides one of the riches of the region,… These immense quarries dug under the hill in the 19th century Among the most impressive, the Sarragan quarry. A true stone cathedral, the last one still in operation. Pascal Bourgier is the current owner of this exceptional site. For more than 40 years, he has exploited this masterpiece carved by generations of craftsmen. A know-how inherited from his father. Each block is cut with a saw, but to judge its quality, it is first a question of ear “If the sound is clear, the rock is good. And if it doesn’t ring, then there really is a problem. » It is also by making the stone of the walls and ceilings ring that the quarrymen progress in the heart of the mountain. By ear, they track down what they fear most: the flaw that could threaten the entire work. “In fact it’s the stone that takes you to places…. The quarryman himself must have thought in the sense of operating the galleries. But nature is still there and we must respect it. And well we go according to all the cracks that there are in the ceiling. So there is obviously a sensitivity to the place. » Following the path of the stone, men plunged deep into the massif, sometimes digging imposing galleries. “This one we call the long one. Because it took a long time to make. And then because it has a completely exceptional length . It must be 37 meters almost forty meters. It’s a place that is very endearing. Anyway, here I am, I’m practically one of the pillars. Support this career. I can’t part with this place, I’m in love with it. » A few kilometers from Pascal’s quarry, here are the valleys of the Alpilles A wild space of scrubland and pines. Here, the essences and scents of Provence delight bees and beekeepers! This morning, Sophie Berton receives a group of amateurs who want to install their own hive at home . “It’s not a trumpet , it’s an accordion” For Sophie, the first concern is to raise bees to help the survival of this increasingly threatened species. “Look, it’s very beautiful, there’s honey, it shines, that’s today’s honey, nectar, it makes mosaics. What I’m learning above all is how to breed and already preserve the colony. It is important. Hence the interest in understanding that the bee preserves itself. Afterwards, if they make us honey, so much the better, it’s a gift. » In this initiation, knowledge of the natural environment is essential. With the help of Sophie, the apprentice beekeepers learn to recognize plants that are important for the survival of bees. “They have a blast in August with that!” And yet it doesn’t look like much, it saves us. If you have hives in the Alpilles and it’s the dry period that saves us . We make honeydews with that. It makes a very dark honey that looks a bit like fennel honey. it tastes like nuts” “- Why do we say that we can only have acacia honey, only chestnut honey when there are plenty of plants around where the bees can go. * Sophie: When a bee really polishes a flower, it goes to the end of this flowering. And I see here there is rosemary and thyme which can flower at the same time. They are not going to let go of rosemary even if it is at the end of flowering compared to thyme, they prefer rosemary” Driven by her passion, Sophie wanted to reconnect with an ancient tradition. A know-how gradually abandoned in the 20th century, with the invention of modern hives. “- B You take a small piece of rattan” * And do we wet the rattan too? * Ah yes always also so that he works better” It is thanks to the talent of Béatrice, a basket maker friend, that she can, today, revive this unusual activity. “We are trying to do the same thing as that, (she points to the hive) which is to say a traditional straw hive. It really is a hive that is extremely old, which already existed in the 15th and 13th centuries. Depending on the region, it may be rye straw. In the Camargue, we’re going to try to make it out of rice, because there it is. » « – You must constantly be in tension. Always be… both the cord and the link. * you need strength eh… don’t worry about cramps in your fingers * How long will it take us to achieve this result? * It took me a good afternoon to do this. Let’s say 4 hours. A good 4 hours to do this, to boot. » A long job that had to be started again and again since, at the time, the straw hive was destroyed with each harvest. But for Sophie, this method could be a solution to attract new bee colonies. “This is the ideal tool for the most natural preservation possible. It is a natural material . The swarm has a balloon shape, it is exactly the initial shape of a straw hive. So all these elements mean that the bee is no coincidence that it has been on earth for 3 million years and that today it is dying. It’s because there is this approach of man and bee which no longer exists. It may be a utopian tool on my part, but I want to try it anyway. » “- I’m going to break down * But no, you’re not going to break down” Sophie’s project is ambitious. She wants to recreate a traditional apier from Provence. “- Shall we install it there? * Yeah, the little path on the right there” About fifty hives arranged in a dry stone wall After a week of work, the first hive is finished. “- There we are, we are going to bug him there as they say in Provence. So. What do you think? * It’s not bad, it’s good. » « – How does a hive like that work then? * It makes you laugh. So yes. How it works. Well, first you have to go find a swarm of bees, hanging on a branch for example. The advantage is, you turn your basket over, there is a swarm hanging on a branch, you shake the branch. Phew, it hits the spot. All right. And then the bees will come in and out, and they will start to build wax and make honey, but also to raise their young larvae. » In a few months, dozens of swarms will set off to conquer this new paradise. In the Middle Ages a vast estate extended here. Vines, olive trees, flocks of sheep raised by peasants who had to pay tax to the priory of St Peyre d’Entremonts. Located on the salt road, this fortified building, now undergoing restoration, offered shelter to travelers. Sophie found this ruin under the brambles 10 years ago. Every summer, all the members of his association return to the site. Among the most loyal volunteers, Simon, Sophie’s son. At 29, Simon is a stonemason . After working on the Strasbourg Cathedral and the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, ​​he returned to settle in the region. “In fact, the facade is opening . So we are in the process of seeing, because formerly there was a rampart to support this part which is in the process of opening. » For Simon, the ruins of the priory especially evoke childhood memories. “I started when I was a kid, we had a lot of fun with my brother in the scrubland, in the hills and we often came here to climb the stones. I don’t know if this building was an impetus for me for this profession but it was always a place where I felt good in it and one day I came with friends and we came up to talk if we could renovate it . We said why not” “Nickel” The priory was abandoned in the 14th century. At the time, a cold wave hit the region and ruined the crops. Poverty sets in and the priory is abandoned. But today, this story is coming out of oblivion thanks to the work of Sophie’s association. A few kilometers from the priory, at the foot of Les Baux de Provence, a highly anticipated event is held every autumn: the stone festival. A large gathering organized by Simon “I can give you a little advice if you no longer want to get in shape , you have a little fat here so you could make a little sildure » A weekend during which stonecutters challenge each other. Among the competitors, experienced professionals but also young apprentices. Hanaé is 16 years old and she is following vocational training in a high school in the region. “It’s quite special how I discovered stone cutting. A Saturday morning with my mother. I asked him to go visit the school. And more specifically the stone cutting workshop because it intrigued me. And as soon as I entered the workshop I said to myself “yeah!, that’s what I want to do”. “To be a stonemason it’s passion, passion for work, being patient, meticulous, concentrated too. Work the material as it is noble. It’s something beautiful. » “The material is what I like, it’s stone, hardness. The material itself. Then there is the gesture, the fact that it lets off steam too. There’s a need to let off some steam, you’re nervous, take a suit, go and hit it, it feels good. What I also like is coming home in the evening after a day of workshops. Flat is excellent. We sleep like a baby. We sleep like a baby… I love it. » With this celebration, Simon wants to show that stone cutting is also a modern profession that must evolve with the times. “A stonemason is very traditionalist but even so he now realizes that doing only restoration… the basis of our profession is being a builder, it is building and there we are only preserving what is already existing. There is a conscience, even if at the beginning we think of a stonemason, we are idealistic and we imagine ourselves a stonemason at the bottom of the cathedrals but over time, we realize that we are not made that for catering, we want to create and evolve. » A few hours later, the high school students have made good progress. David and Brian chose to make a desk. Brian takes care of the column while David cuts the board. But, for the two apprentices, the objective is ambitious and there is no time. “There we are trying to catch up, to put in some moldings that we had not planned at the start, as we still have a little time. So we’re trying to do it as quickly as possible with the last hour we have left. » “- Do you think you have a chance of winning? * We can always hope! » Final cuts of the scissors, before the jury deliberates. Respect of measurements, symmetry of the parts, everything is checked… For high school students, seconds pass like minutes. For the best, it’s almost time for consecration “So the first on the desks were Brian and David who won” “Caillou!!!!!! » Return to the city of Arles. For ten years, archaeologists have been bringing up remains from the Rhône that reveal the importance of the city’s port in the time of Caesar. But in August 2011, an incredible rescue was being prepared. A team was preparing to raise the wreck of a Roman boat! The means are unprecedented: A barge was installed directly above the wreck, and above all, for the first time in France, professional divers came support archaeologists. “- Shall we agree on the crank and the feet and start lifting? * Going back to this moment the feet… » At their head, Benoit Poinard directs the operations. “- Did you tighten the cables? * The cables are separated. You can go there”
“For divers, our daily life is dams, bridge piers, oil platforms, these are worlds much less poetic and romantic than lifting a wreck that is two thousand years old. * Can you send the gas, 150 bars? » Scuba divers’ helmets allow them to communicate with the surface, and transmit images of the bottom during the dive. “- OK here we go * ok here we go” This wreck in excellent condition is the oldest and one of the longest ancient barges ever found. “-Hey John? * Yes ? * So what gives? * Ok I’m going to check if it’s good, if it’s not finished I’ll continue it to finish it * Benoit: Ok » Sabrina Marlier is the archaeologist who directs the scientific operations. “- She’s a good visi * Yes it’s good yes it’s perfect. I’m starting to see her. » A specialist in ancient wrecks, she has been studying this barge for four years. “It’s a boat called a barge, from the Gallo-Roman era which is dated quite precisely from the beginning of the 50s after Jesus Christ, and a barge means that it is a flat-bottomed boat intended exclusively for navigation in a river environment, we can consider that it is the equivalent of our current barges” The underwater surveys allowed archaeologists to draw this very well preserved boat. “It is a large boat, a very very large boat, since the wreck is almost 31 meters long, with a width of around 3 meters, so a very narrow boat but very very long. It is a boat which was capable of sailing between Lyon and the sea, across the entire Rhône, we know that it was part of a local economy, since at the time of its sinking, it was transporting a load of stones , coming from the quarries of Saint Gabriel, a town quite close to Arles. » According to the first hypotheses, the shipwreck occurred during a storm which caused the Rhône to flood. The water then rushed into the boat. Unbalanced, the boat was dragged towards the bottom, taking with it its load and all its equipment on board! Today the crew’s dishes, the rudder and the mast are still in place, which makes this wreck unique. For months, archaeologists asked themselves a question: How to get a wreck this large and so heavy? Benoit’s team came up with a totally unexpected solution: Cut the boat into sections, with a simple saw! Today, the divers are testing their idea for the first time “- Ok listen, I started cutting, I’m about a third of the way through, and it’s cutting well, so far I haven’t fallen on scrap metal * OK well received * the cutting is finished, you can start lifting * OK » On the pontoon, the rest of the team goes into action. Centimeter by centimeter, she moves up the section of the wreck towards the surface. “It’s starting to take off, it’s moving away a little” After months of preparation, Sabrina is in the front row “He’s the baby” “- it’s funny to see the boat once cut like that * Yes it’s is good, you have the best view at the moment * affirmative, when we know that it was done two thousand years ago… » Once again, the Gallo-Roman barge finds the light of day. Sabrina has been imagining this moment for four years. “It’s extremely moving and it’s not so much because the boat is old, it’s mainly because we’ve been working on it for years and studying it piece by piece. We underwater you have to imagine that we see the boat each time, we see pieces of 20 cm underwater and there we have an overall view, it’s incredible, it’s really amazing. » The exit from this first section is the start of an incredible bet: to reassemble the entire boat in just a few months…. “- The chocks are great * yes they did something, they worked really well . » For Claude Sintès, the director of the museum which will exhibit this boat, this rescue is an event “You can now see this boat, we have the ropes on which they pulled, we have the mallets with which they hit against the bordered, so all of this is an extraordinary slice of life that we are absolutely not used to seeing, and so I admit to you that this is extraordinary, and that is fantastic for us. » Immediately after arriving in the hangar, the boat is installed under misters. Because, for him, the change of environment is particularly violent. After 2000 years spent under water, the wood must not dry out. “What happens is that the wood is saturated with water, that is to say that all the fibers inside instead of having cellulose contain water, so what means that if we take the wood out and if we let it dry, the water will evaporate and all the structures will collapse, we will have completely exploded wood, that is why we must constantly put it either in water or in water. spray all day. » Right next door, another team takes care of all the Roman objects taken out of the water. Faced with the impressive quantity of pottery, a solution had to be found: “- are they all different then? » A laboratory headed by David Djaoui was directly installed on the quay. “- You have veins, streaks, here you have leaves of water with pearls, do you see the finesse of this one? * It’s incredible you are reconstituting the boxes as they were in antiquity, we would have to put straw and we have an antique box * Yes absolutely » David has another surprise in store for Claude. It has just been brought to the surface and will become one of the key objects of the excavation. ” – my my my ! Oh yes ! * Then you have all the other pieces that are inside. And there you really have the libation vase * It’s an extraordinary piece * It’s absolutely sublime » Libation vases were used during rituals during which the Romans paid homage to their gods. “When we saw it come out of the water, we were all a little stunned by the quality, the necklace, and it’s the first time I’ve seen a libation vase of this quality. There we rediscover the pleasure when we were children and wanted to be an archaeologist of finding beautiful objects. ” A few days later. The section that has just been taken out is dismantled, piece by piece. Because each piece of wood, each element of metal will undergo a very particular restoration “It seems quite simple, what you need to know is that this wood which is oak is now more like a lump of butter coming out of the fridge or even that has been out of the fridge for a while, it no longer has any resistance. It is extremely fragile waterlogged wood , so the nail was driven into this wood two thousand years ago and so you have to be very careful when removing it. » One by one, the 235 pieces that make up the barge will leave Arles to live the rest of their adventure in Grenoble…. We are on the site of the atomic energy commission. « – They are already at work * Hello » This is where the restoration of the parts of the boat begins « – Cava well? * So. What part is this? * So those are the crosspieces, they were located in the central part of the boat. *Okay very good* They are beautiful, huh? * Yes, they are magnificent” For the first boards of the barge, the treatment began a few weeks ago in these basins. It consists of replacing the water, contained in the wood fibers, with a kind of resin. A technique developed in the early 1980s “There was a lot of research in the 20th century to save wood, there were lots of materials that were studied, there was sugar, other things that have been tested and polyethylene glycol this particular resin has become a widespread treatment around the world. » “All the little yellow labels that you see are what will ensure the reassembly of the architectural pieces together so by looking in the pool thanks to these yellow labels I know where we are in the boat of which piece it comes to and there it is and with all the pieces that we see here it gives an idea of ​​the giant puzzle that we will have to put together. » “There you go, go glu glu” While the slow restoration work begins here, the lifting of the wreck continues 300 kilometers away. On the banks of the Rhône, the dives follow one another. In 4 weeks everything should be finished. The sections of the wreck rise one after the other. But, at the end of August, storms threaten to slow down the work. “- Ok received” (on water level) If the storm sets in and the waters rise, the construction site risks falling behind schedule. “The problem is that it’s very windy with gusts and we’re not sure we can do the lifting to put the cradle on the ground. So we are a bit between rising and a risk of gusts and leaving it in the water with the storms that arrive. The wind is clearing, it’s falling, it’s falling! » Finally, the storm passes and work resumes. After 3 months of relentless efforts, the exhausted archaeologists regained hope. “There I start to tell myself that we’re going to get there, that it’s almost won, I start to fantasize about imagining my children, the grandchildren, the grandchildren coming to the museum to see the boat and then we start to dream” A months later. The weather finally allowed the climb of the first 9 sections, the time for the last lift has finally arrived. “Ayayaille We’re going to remember this moment for a few years. » Seven years ago, the wreck was discovered, today its bow reappears. “Is this the end of your worries or the beginning of regrets? * I don’t know but it’s super moving, it’s incredible to have gotten to this point, incredible. » For the first time in the world, a complete Gallo-Roman barge could be brought to the surface. “Ah, it’s over, huh? » (The boat entered the hangar) The end of the refloating of the wreck marks the beginning of a new adventure. We will find the whole team facing the incredible puzzle of reassembling the boat. At the time when the barge was sailing on the Rhône, the city was booming. Among the remarkable works, the Romans built this aqueduct which will capture water from the Alpilles to transport it to the gates of the city. Today, these remains hidden under the trees are the subject of special attention. Each spring, an association of hikers sets about the task of patience: clearing the ancient stone walls. Little by little, the work reappears under the gaze of a self-taught archaeologist, Otello Badan. “- This stone is a quarry which is 8 kilometers from here. They brought them in by the truckload, and they actually squared them on site – Hiker: I wonder how many people they could see on a construction site like that? – 5 or 6000 people There is the one who removed the vegetation, the one who dug the earth, the one who dug the rock, the surveyors who leveled the land, you have to calculate everything, that’s it.” This work was built in the 1st century by the Roman engineers. At the time the construction of this aqueduct was a real achievement. The pipeline had to transport water over 40 kilometers. To adapt to the curves of the terrain and cross the valleys, the water passed over these engineering structures. Facing the hills, it disappeared into tunnels dug into the stone. Otello contributed to the discovery of several sites in the region. He knows how to read in the rock the clues which, as here, betray the presence of the aqueduct under the scrubland. “We can see the vault of the work there. I ‘ll go through there. It’s not easy. You see the tool marks on the rock. There were two or three men digging there. Workers. And then, a little further on, there were others advancing towards them. And we see the spades. There were two teams. Thanks to these traces we can see where the worker, which way they were going. They followed the contour lines. Even in valleys like this. They didn’t make a bridge, they made it like a real snake. » In the plain the aqueduct was invisible. At the request of a historian, Otello managed to find the route of the work by observing the stones! “You have to look at everything, the color of the earth, the vegetation, you have to get down on all fours, because there are some clues and some small concretions that remain on the surface from the cleaning that the Romans did. » It was by finding these stones coming from maintenance work on the aqueduct that Otello discovered an access chimney. In this vast field, he opened a hole and to everyone’s surprise, he fell directly onto this well. “I removed the earth and when we actually arrive in the gallery. It takes your breath away to see this work. Looks like it was done 2 months ago. It’s 2000 years old, it looks like it’s new. » And here again, the slightest traces of tools become evidence. “There must have been Roman inhabitants not far away and they came to help themselves, they came to take water. In principle, it is forbidden to draw water from an aqueduct. And here, we see the wear of the ropes when they took on water, for centuries. It’s extraordinary, I’ve never seen anything like this. » Otello’s discoveries made it possible to clarify the underground route of the aqueduct. Currently, scientists are working on another part of the tunnel, around ten kilometers upstream in the heart of the Alpilles. It was a few steps from this chapel that they discovered another entrance. At the foot of this tower, an impressive part of the aqueduct is under study. Today, two archaeologists are coming to explore this conduit to help the work of historians “- Do you have any idea of ​​the depth? * It’s about 16 meters. Should I go there? » The two men visit the southern part of the underground canal under the eyes of Otello and Philippe Leveau, a specialist in the Roman world. “- I’m going to see if the passage underneath is possible but it’s crowded there. *: There is a block that fell from above elsewhere. And which hinders access. * When it’s going well though, we can stand up. * It’s still quite a monumental job since we have a well that is almost 4 square meters on the ground, about fifteen meters deep, that’s still 60 cubic meters of rock. It’s not nothing. » Once past the narrow gully, Thierry and Martin arrive in the canal itself. A construction which will inform them about the technical mastery of Roman engineers “- Who makes the measurements? * I’m going to take notes. 5 03 70 direction…. 0 slope. * Alright, next station. » Using their instruments, Martin and Thierry measure the actual slope of the conduit over several hundred meters. For these two specialists, the rectilinear nature of the work, and its very slight slope are impressive. “6O! On a technical level it is a feat because it brings water from the Moulegesse marshes which are at an altitude of 48 meters to Arles at around 8 meters above sea level. That is to say 40 meters of difference in altitude over a distance of 40 kilometers. We must still appreciate the quality of the work of the engineers of the time. To be able to run this line of water over such a distance is quite spectacular. » After several hours of observation, the archaeologists will have the privilege of making a moving discovery. “We can move around so I’m going” Above the vault, a thin space shelters a testimony of the passage of Roman workers. “ These are niches that are 5/6 centimeters wide for as much height. These niches serve simply to install lamps when digging simply to be able to light up. They are installed according to lighting needs without any really fixed regularity. There given the size we can put I would say the Roman oil lamps, classic as we know them with still a few traces of coal running around. » Thanks to this research, the route of the aqueduct is now known from the Alpilles to the city of Arles. Some of the cliffs of this massif rise to almost 500 meters above sea level. At the foot of these mountains, olive tree cultivation creates formidable mosaics. For millennia, it has been the mythical tree of Provence. In the Alpilles, he found a unique terroir, and his fruits supply the region’s markets. In St Rémy de Provence, the olive is the star of the stalls “- Madam, what will you please? A little Provençal blend? *No more like that” But the real flagship product is olive oil. An oil that we taste,…. “- It’s the variety of olives that actually gives this raw artichoke taste at the end of the mouth * ah yes” And even that we taste, “- You will have a green fruity flavor * Thank you very much * thank you excellent daytime. Enjoy your stay with us » Tasting olive oil, judging its flavor and subtlety, it’s a profession. “- So the smell? » Françoise Pouget is an olive oil expert. She is recognized for her work around the world. “- It is quite elegant, it has a nice sweetness, it is not too bitter and it just has a little scratch in the throat that we call ardence. That’s it ? * That’s it ! * I was not mistaken, did you give me a good rating? * Shopkeeper: Absolutely, 10 out of 10 * okay then * Exactly that” In the aisles of the market, Françoise Pouget continues her tastings. An art that she learned in Spain. This is why his profession has a surprising name with Iberian accents. She is a Catador! “So Catador is neither a bad word nor a disease nor an olive oil killer. Catador is a virgin olive oil taster . We could concretize it to make it clearer, like being an oenologist of olive oil. » Today, Françoise is looking for a rare product. While the usual oils are taken from green olives, it tracks down dark fruitiness. A Provençal specialty made from black olives. “- Here we are on something completely different * Yes, it’s really the black olives, the tapenade, the aromas… * There is absolutely no bitterness, there is absolutely no heat . Very evolved aromas. * Lots of aromas, your mouth is full of them, it has nothing to do with green fruitiness. » Long forgotten, dark fruit is making a real comeback, thanks to the enthusiasm of ambassadors like Françoise. “When you enter a mill, you have a smell of dark fruitiness which is in the process of being produced, it is between Guerlain and the almost orgasmic, it takes you over, it is of the order of the senses, of the sensual , of something that escapes you and that touches you at the same time” In the Alpilles, very few farmers still know how to produce this oil. Only a few enthusiasts decided to relaunch this ancestral activity. In this garden of paradise, Olivier Penel planted several varieties of olive trees. It is spring, the trees are in flower. The harvest looks good but there is a threat: Flies lay eggs on the flowers and compromise the quality of the fruit…. “At the moment we are passing clay to keep the flies away, so we veil just lightly with a white clay. As there is a flock of flies at the moment, and they have big bulging eyes with lots of little facets. They spot an olive tree by its color. We change the color slightly, it is lost, it goes next and it is won. Next step will be the harvest. » To produce his oil, Olivier was inspired by the know-how of his grandfather. He rediscovered this art which had almost disappeared “I tried to come back to gestures simple. On tastes of yesteryear. I rewatched everything that happened during my childhood. And I remembered all the smells and all the gestures. And that’s how they did it, I’m sure. They did like that. Because when you put your hands in a pile of olives. When it’s good, if you know how to do it well. It smells, it smells like blond tobacco. It’s even more than black olive, it’s starting to be a little cocoa, truffle. It’s worth it, and you don’t get your hands dirty! » In the olive grove, the seasons pass. Each contributes to the slow ripening of the olives. Summer heats up the trees… With autumn, the fruits turn from yellow to green. It’s December, the olives are finally ripe… ready to be picked. Here, the harvest is done in the traditional way: “You have to choose the right side to attack. Not just any angle of attack. Because if we do it like this, for example. We can break a branch. There is a sense of typing. It’s natural, we don’t need machines, things like that, so we always pick things up like that. That works. Pay attention to yourself, especially your eyes. Ouch! » Thanks to this technique, the pickers collect nearly three tonnes of olives per day “- Isn’t that an easy job? * Yes, it’s no rest » It’s 9 a.m., the men join forces to harvest the first harvest of the day. A harvest in the middle of winter which will guarantee the quality of the oil because the intense cold concentrates the flavors in the heart of the fruit. “There it’s around O and with a mistral at 100 km/h it’s quite cold you have to resist, it makes a good oil that’s the main thing” On his estate, Olivier obtains as many flavors as he has olive varieties. “Certain varieties provide a little more acidity. Others more soft. Others, more creaminess. It’s like all products, whether wine or oil. The fact of putting several varieties complements each other ‘s taste . To have much more aromatic development and structure in the mouth” For the pressing of his oil, Olivier works with Sophie Denis. It is in his mill that the olives will be transformed. Sophie comes to assess the year’s harvest. “We have beautiful fruits, very very beautiful fruits this year, of good caliber and above all very healthy! They are very black, really. We often get the question from the public: are there varieties of olive, a green olive? Most people think it’s two different varieties when ripe. It’s true that this is a question that we are often asked. In fact, all olives start out green and as they ripen, they transform and become dark, not necessarily black . It’s more like dark purples, dark browns. Home dress colors. If you look closely it’s never black. You see this one they are rather purplish. It’s not black, a little red even” For Olivier and his team the harvest will last another week. The fruits will then take the path to Sophie’s mill. It is here, in this 17th century mill, that the famous black fruitiness will be born… But before pressing, the olives must undergo a final stage. They are stored in these attics for several days, to give rise to an essential natural phenomenon: fermentation. “You fill it for me for tomorrow now. » “The fact of having an accumulation of fruit, the granary being between 10 and 20 tonnes, we have a natural heating of the fruit which takes place. So in the past we measured it empirically by putting our hands together. Today we use a probe to be able to really follow the rise in temperature. And that. Enhances the aromas of olive oil. And that’s actually the secret of dark fruitiness. » Then it’s time for grinding. Only a few mills like this still use stone millstones. This slow traditional mixing is followed by pressing… the last step before discovering this thin golden thread, Alpilles olive oil. For Olivier, this year again, the magic happened. “You have to try this one. It’s my oil, it’s oil and when you find it there it’s great! Some people make omelettes, well I plant olive trees, I pick olives and I make oil, it’s magnificent! » An exceptional product, the dark fruit has survived the ages. It reconnects with the flavors of Mediterranean oils. The Alpilles are also the kingdom of orchards. It is here in these greenhouses that a summer fruit is grown: Cantalou de Provence… An old variety of melon produced for a long time by Lina and Jeannot “- Oh, do we have the whole team today? » If they continue to preserve this species, it is for Pierre Lillamand, one of the best confectioners in the region… « – Hello, are there any more? * We haven’t quite finished picking this morning * I see there are quite a few there » Every week in season, Pierre comes to pick up the most beautiful melons from Lina and Jeannot. Since 1866, his family has been making candied fruits with passion. Its specialty: this famous melon which has deserted our shelves. “This one is superb, these are varieties that cannot be preserved, once picked you have to work with them or eat them, that’s why they were abandoned. On the other hand, to make candied fruits to rediscover the taste of the fruit, in the candied fruit, it is absolutely necessary to work with these varieties. There are still crazy people who still want to play crazy with us to achieve a taste result that is incomparable. * He said crazy….. * crazy with joy and good humor * we finish the picking and then I’ll give you a hand * ok » To preserve this variety of melon, Lina and Jeannot, keep the seeds from one year to the next. Direction Saint Rémy de Provence, a few kilometers away… “- I did some yesterday” In the company courtyard, in the shade of a large plane tree, the women take over. Because before being candied, the cantalou de Provence must be removed from its skin. A ritual that is passed down from generation to generation. “My grandparents, great grandparents did it this way, my aunt taught me and my brother to peel melons, it’s the trademark in fact, we always saw them doing it” “- Odette: I am fell into it when I was little, it was my father who taught me how to do that, and I always enjoyed it, I was passed on this love of fruit, of work and that’s it, It’s not a job for For me, it’s fun. * It’s the fastest * and yes, I do about ten per hour * In fact you have to see the blade, * you only have to remove small peels, it’s very very fine * In fact we find ourselves after, for me, ten minutes a quarter of an hour, with the shape of the melon like that, bare, you wouldn’t say that it was actually peeled. We sculpt, we make art we will say in our own way” All day long, the women repeat the same gestures, fixing their attention on the blade of the knife and on the thickness of the peel. Preparing these melons together is also nourishing the bonds that unite these women, all generations combined… “- For me It’s a moment of relaxation, we’re happy, we chat * There’s a really good atmosphere, * yes it’s true, * Everyone tells their family life, their cooking recipes, sometimes we are in very deep thoughts, in our world, sometimes we don’t speak we are there we cry, sometimes we cry, Sometimes we crack up, sometimes we laugh, we share our lives, eh Martine? It’s a women’s story, yes it’s a women’s story! » Once the melons are peeled, the quarters are heated in this juice and pricked one by one so that the syrup penetrates the heart of the fruit. “After having prepared it, having peeled it, we will soften it with water, and this step is essential since too soft the fruit will turn into jam and if it is not softened enough, it will shrivel more late in the manufacturing stages. And there all the art of the confectioner which will sting who will look, who will touch” 1. “There’s no real learning, it’s experience” The next step is crucial. The melon is cooked in a syrup. Little by little, this mixture of water and sugar replaces the natural water of the fruit. The operation is repeated 7 or 8 times for three or four weeks. It’s candy. A gourmet alchemy which gently transforms the fruit and exudes intense aromas… “It gives off an exceptional perfume, in fact when you pass the different broths, you can even smell it in the courtyard, it smells a bit like summer” “- We arrives at the end * It looks well cooked” “The idea of ​​a good candied fruit is to be able to preserve the taste of the fruit, its grain, for example a pear, we find the grain of the pear like a fruit that has just been picked in fact, it’s really the artisanal method is really the only method that allows all of these elements” Here, all the fruits are touched by the magic of candy. A knowledge that has been developed over the centuries. The Romans dipped fruit in honey but it was in the Middle Ages that Nostradamus, the famous astrologer, found the ideal recipe. He wrote “fardements et confitures” which remains, even today, the recipe for candied fruit shared by the best artisans. Before delighting fans, the confectioner’s team must carry out a final bath, a glaze, which will dress each fruit in a fine coat of sugar. “The icing is the last operation that we do, to prevent the fruit from sticking to the fingers when tasting. If the icing is done well, the fruit will remain shiny, but not sticky” Sublimated by this long transformation , melons, pears, strawberries, figs, oranges and tangerines retain their place in the Provençal heritage… Only a few kilometers to the south, a change of scenery La Crau is an absolutely unknown pebble plain. This vast expanse is the ancient Durance delta. Today it is also one of the only steppes in Europe! A desert land but one which men have been able to take advantage of. Once irrigated, this territory gives birth to a treasure. A unique wealth that is exported throughout the world is Crau hay. A multitude of plants and flowers which gives these meadows their exceptional quality and has even allowed this fodder to receive a controlled designation of origin. Lionel Escoffier is one of the ardent defenders of this culture. “So here are all the grasses, they are in this style, so you have cocksfoot, brome, wheatgrass. And then you have a part, we call the heel which is essentially composed of legume, you also have wild carrot, there I don’t see any… Oh yes, there is some wild carrot. Dandelion, plantain, here are all these species that make up the heel. So if you want this mixture of plants brings at the same time everything that is cellulose, therefore fibrolong for the digestion of animals, and then everything that is energetic, proteins it is brought by all the others so alfalfa, puffball, finally legumes mainly. So that makes it a very energy-rich hay too. » Lionel is also a breeder. He has a flock of nearly two thousand sheep. Animals which particularly benefit from the riches of the pasture. If Crau’s hay is so generous, it is because he took advantage of a gift from the Durance “dreeee ouéueoéueoéuééu. When we talk about Crau, the characteristic of Crau. That’s what it is. The pebbles of Crau, so the Crau in fact which is the old bed of the Durance so the pebbles were carried away by the river. They have been polished by water so we see that they are pebbles which are quite smooth. So the advantage of these stones is that they provide… both they aerate the soil, and then the characteristic The main thing is that the pebble captures the heat of the sun during the day and releases it at night. So that is to say that we usually say that in Crau the grass grows as much during the day as at night or even more at night than during the day. and as a result the grass grows much faster. » An herb which benefits from another benefit: The waters of the Durance carried here by these small canals. This ingenious 16th century irrigation network made it possible to turn this desert into an agricultural plain. “It is thanks to water that our land is so fertile. And what makes this water so rich is that it comes from the Alps, we can see it is quite muddy and it is loaded with silt, with trace elements, these silts once the water penetrates the ground , are deposited on the plot and this is what brings everything that is minerals vitamins to the meadow, to the grass and to the hay of Crau » Today, this hay is the delight of the race horses, the stud farms of Normandy to the stables of the King of Morocco and the unexpected Sultan of Brunei: the Baux marshes. This vast wetland is a reconquest. A few years ago, intensive agriculture took over this natural area, and the use of fertilizers threatened its biodiversity. Recently, farmers have become aware of its value and have let nature take back its rights. Since then, the birds have returned by the thousands. The marshes have become the refuge of swallows. At dusk, they gather in the reed beds to nest.) It is this moment that these amateur ornithologists have chosen to deploy their nets and try to catch them. “These are mist nets with very fine mesh that allow you to catch birds without hurting them. They are approximately three meters high and 12 meters long and are the most common technique for capturing passerines and small birds. » These volunteers from the A Rocha association regularly organize counts and for that, they have a trick, they broadcast swallow calls. In a few minutes, several birds are trapped . But very quickly they are delivered. “So actually there are several species. It is part of the insectivore family. These are birds which therefore have quite thin beaks. The particularity of this family is when it does, it will have a big mouth and it will hunt insects in flight. So they have fairly long wings. Which actually allows them to maneuver well in the air. This species is not yet threatened. But there is a big decline. So it’s really important to take an interest in this little bird which still makes a pretty fantastic crossing. It will travel up to 3000 kilometers.” For swallows, the Marais des Baux is the last stop before the great crossing of the Mediterranean and the Sahara. A site that these long-term travelers did not choose by chance “We realized that it chose certain specific habitats for feeding. In particular everything that is Crau hay meadow. The vineyards, the orchards. There are also many orchards nearby. There are vineyards not very far away in the costières of Nîmes. And the fruits that are left during the grape harvest or during the harvest rot, produce a lot of flies that the swallows will eat and that is why we see so many of them and which choose to gather here. » At nightfall, following the study program. “18 grams 6” The swallows are measured, ringed, they are even weighed! And here again, volunteers have an amazing way to assess their physical health! “We blow on their feathers to see the flesh and through transparency, we can see spots of fat under the skin and depending on the quantity of fat that we can observe we give a score which goes from one to four . that means that they are not at all fat and that they are very fat, that they have eaten well and that they are ready to leave” The 238 swallows studied by the team will not be released until the next day Morning. At dawn, the swallows in the reed bed wake up. It’s time to release the captives They will all disperse to feed a few more days in the Alpilles. They will stock up before the big trip to Central Africa and some even to South Africa! Return to the city of Arles. The Roman barge was taken out of the water a year and a half ago now. At the museum, expansion work has started because this boat is so large that a new exhibition room needs to be built. Only Claude Sintès, the director, can imagine the future place of the boat. “Oh my, it’s grown a lot since the last time. The boat is going to be installed in this way, that is to say you will have the bow there, then the boat will expand over this entire pit and will reach the rear down there, at the stern , and we also found the mast of the boat and so we will have to install the mast on our boat of course and be able to give the public an understanding of what a boat really was in antiquity. » At the time of its shipwreck in the Rhône, the barge was transporting stones which were to be used in the construction of Roman villas. It is with its cargo and all the objects that belonged to its sailors that it will be presented in the new wing of the museum. But the restoration of the boat is far from finished. In Grenoble, this restaurateur is preparing to use extraordinary means: nuclear industry techniques. “There, we are in the irradiation cell. These are the elements of the mast of the Arles barge. And so these elements have been impregnated with a liquid resin and we are going to harden this resin using radioactive sources, cobalt 60 sources? It is this radiation which will cause the hardening and polymerization of the resin. » The mast is installed in a watertight blockhouse whose walls and door measure 1.50 meters thick. Once the door is closed, the radioactive bars located in this pool can rise again. The irradiation will last 48 hours “It is a technique which works very well to truly consolidate, to have very great solidity at the level of the objects This is the case of the Arles mast which has very great fragility and which had to be consolidated with this technique. » In the neighboring shed, work is underway to reassemble the boat. The barge must be presented to the Arles museum in just six months. Thanks to the yellow labels, the archaeologists-restorers piece together the giant puzzle and each piece of wood returns to its original place. Sabrina, the archaeologist responsible for the project, came to see the progress of the work. “It’s a real painstaking job that you’re doing on the restoration, it’s progressing quickly, but there’s still a lot of work to do, it’s huge. » “We are on the razor’s edge. Basically we have half of the wreck in front of us since we have around five sections being assembled, so we can say that here we are in the middle of the ford, it There is still a lot of work to put in place the sides, and then fix all the partitions which protect the interior of the boat’s box. » “I still don’t have this vision of the 31 meters. Even though I know the boat well, and we have completed the 3D restitution work, I still have difficulty projecting it in real life. » “It will only be in the museum in September, when we bring in the last sections that we will all be able to see the reconstructed boat at the last moment” “It will be a strong moment, yes…” At the museum, the exhibition of the Gallo-Roman boat is being prepared. The most emblematic objects are being restored Ethel takes care of the mascot of the excavation: this little ceramic dog. “This is a jug with an original shape, with the spout here in the dog’s mouth. The handle has the handle to be able to pour like that, then the flat bottom allows it to be placed and normally at the end of the restoration it will stand upright and we can present it vertically” Between gluing, samples and restoration there is no shortage of work. “-ah but that’s great, Oliva Practa! » For David, in charge of ceramics, every day brings a new enigma. He has just discovered an unknown inscription… “That’s what’s problematic with painted inscriptions, we’re happy to have them and when we have them, sometimes we don’t know what they are! » Some mysteries have been solved. David was able to identify the strange face of this large vase emerging from the waters of the river. This is the very rare representation of Sabasios, a Roman God. “It’s true that we asked ourselves a lot of questions when we discovered it, we didn’t know if it was a bearded jellyfish with snakes, it wasn’t consistent and since then we have found two vases very similar to ours, in Pompeii, in the house of magical cults. Now it turns out that this character is most often represented with snakes, represented bearded, so our hypotheses converge towards this cult of Sabasios. Afterwards we must clearly see that it is a functional object which was used to mix wine with water… we could even bring in ice to mix it for prestigious banquets. It was an object that was used for that. » One after the other, the hundreds of ceramics brought up by the divers passed into the hands of the restorers. At the museum, they will join the famous statues already out of the Rhône: Augustus, Caesar and Neptune. These Roman figures are today witnessing the reassembly of the last section of the boat. It is September 2013. The time for the inauguration is approaching. Packaged like a master painting, the bow of the ship enters the museum! Under the eye of Claude Sintès, the director of the museum, the Roman barge can be seen in its entirety for the first time. “It seems quite simple that the nuclear art colleagues are installing a piece of bow like this This is the case, it seems very simple but for us it is a very strong emotion because we know how much work and anxiety it represents. We know what that means in terms of organization and all that. So the smallest board, this piece of board doesn’t represent much, a few dozen kilos, but it’s a huge weight behind it, of emotions for all of us, for the whole team, and we hope so now for our audience” “- We need to pivot like that a little. We’ll block it and go ahead. So ! » “Seeing a boat like this is immediately imagining the people who were on this boat, it is imagining the people who are pulling this boat, who are slaves, those who are laying the stones on board, or to unload them and all this is immediately perceptible, everyone sees it at the second » Last days of work and final touch-ups. 450 objects which tell the story of life in the port of Arles in the first century AD, join the windows of the new museum room. And the mascot of the excavation, now fully restored, finds pride of place. It is October 4, 2013, a few hours before the inauguration. Presented in a 35 meter long pit, the barge seems ready to cast off and continue its navigation on the river. As at the time of its sinking, everything is in place. The kitchen has been reinstalled at the stern, with its brazier, crockery and sailors’ tools. On board, nothing is missing, not even the towing mast… …..which makes this wreck unique in the world. “When we searched this wreck in 2008, we didn’t know that it was complete and we didn’t know that it would hold so many surprises for us. When we discovered the towing mast, we said to ourselves, we’re so lucky ! we have everything! It’s a beautiful story and a real piece of all of our lives, we won’t come out of it unscathed, we’ll say” 6 p.m., the crowd that has gathered in front of the museum doors impatiently approaches the new room exhibition. “- Not too nervous? * A little bit * The beating heart » The Arlesians are there and are rushing to see the new star. Jean Marc Bernard and Otello Badan did not want to miss the event “Magnificent, magnificent, it’s an exceptional piece! Absolutely ! * Director: You imagined something like that ? * Otello: No, not so gigantic. I thought the small flat-bottomed boats were smaller than that. There it’s something 30 meters long like that” “As soon as you’re on the bow or stern side it’s impressive the state of conservation you can read everything it’s extraordinary I’m enthusiastic » And among the crowd, the team of divers discover the Roman barge for the first time, two years after its rescue “It’s….. There are no words to describe it, it’s so beautiful , it It’s an honor to be there and to have participated in the recovery, in the excavations, I have no words. » “We took this boat out, we imagined how to get it out, we have to imagine this boat that it was 3, 4 meters under the ground with listing , with 900m3 of earth above and that we went to look for it and well that reminds us, the thousands of hours, there are 4000 hours of diving work to get it out and there it is, seeing the culmination of an incredible work which I think will be for the divers who worked on this operation, one of our most beautiful projects and for me who managed it, obviously it is an enormous satisfaction. » “The boat is getting away from you a little from that moment on?” From there he entered the field of heritage, he is no longer ours, he is for the public, we know that we do this job for that, to give back to the public, and it is really with great pleasure to see many people come to admire this boat” After 2000 years spent in the water, the Rhône barge has been classified as a “national treasure”.