Iron production in Brittany (France) : in search of a forgotten industry
Résumé
The Armorican Massif is a region particularly rich in iron ores, that have been exploited at least from the 6th century BC, and until the 20th century. This iron production, especially in the pre-industrial stages, is still poorly known and under-estimated. A wide synthesis of existing data, together with new researches on significant areas in Brittany, has been initiated in 2021. The records are integrated in an online collaborative database. This survey allows to investigate different aspects of ancient iron production in this region, thanks to an approach coupling geology, archaeology and archaeometry.
The mapping of metallurgical sites indicates which territories produced iron and points out the major ones, covering different periods. The chemical characterisation of slags and ores aims to provide data about the circulation of iron. Absolute dating, still rare, allows to investigate the evolution of the technical processes and the continuity or ruptures of the production in the main sectors.
The long-term objective is to reconstitute the history of the ironmaking production in Brittany, from the beginning of the Iron Age to the end of the Middle Ages, and to take the results into account when discussing the component of regional economies at these periods.