INTARANUM
(Entrains) Dept. Nièvre, France.
The site is halfway between Cosne-sur-Loire and
Clamecy-sur-Yonne. The ancient name is attested by a
marble marker discovered at Autun, the capital of the
Aedui. Roads radiated from Entrains to Auxerre, Autun,
and Bourges through Mesves or Cosnes and to Orléans
through St. Amand and Neuvy-sur-Loire. The city was
built on an overhanging rock where the valleys of the
Trélong and the Nohain meet, along the edge of which
are two parallel fault lines. These valleys also bounded
the cities of the Aedui, Biturigi, and Senoni, and constituted a border region that, in turn, came under the
authority of Autun, Auxerre, then Nevers.
Although no ancient monument has been preserved,
the modern city bears traces of an amphitheater, some
baths, and many temples. Inhabited since Gallic times
but built up chiefly from the 2d c. onward, Entrains has
yielded 120 carved stone fragments—more than the
whole of the Nièvre territory combined. Colossal limestone statues of Apollo (2.65 m) and very probably of
Jupiter, Mithraic bas-reliefs as well as a great many
traces of indigenous cults testify to the religious fervor
of the inhabitants, who also included in their pantheon
the gods Borvo and Candidus, as is shown by a bronzeworkers' dedication. Still, Entrains was not just a city
of temples; at the same time it was an active commercial and industrial center. Spanish amphorae have
been found there, along with terra sigillate ware from S
and central Galhia, Argonne pottery decorated with the
pestle, gray crackleware from ha Villeneuve au Châtelot,
and even ocellated ware that shows how Celtic decorative
motifs still persisted in the 1st c. Also in the region
were sculptors' and weavers' workshops; work in bronze
and iron was also extremely important. Since 1965 excavations at the “chantier Chambault” have uncovered
an insula belonging to ancient Intaranum. A blacksmith's forge, some vaults, a well, cesspools, and ancient roads have also been discovered. Stratigraphical
studies and an examination of the objects found on the
site make it possible to date the period of activity of
this district between the 1st c. and the end of the 4th.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
J. Bollandus et al.,
Acta sanctorum quot
toto orbe coluntur, 49 vols. in fol. (1643-1769):
Passio
Perigrini, 3; J. F. Baudiau,
Histoire d'Entrains, with
appendix by M. Héron de Villefosse on the antiquities
of Entrains (1879); E. Thevenot, “Le culte des eaux et
le culte solaire à Entrains,”
Ogam, no. 31 (1954) 9-20;
J.-B. Devauges, “Entrains gallo-romain,” doctoral dissertation, 3d cycle, Faculté des Lettres de Dijon (1970)
MPI.
J.-B. DEVAUGES
