VERSIGNY
Aisne, France.
In the arrondissement of Laon, canton of La Fère. Excavations since 1966 have revealed an important religious complex in the wood SE of the commune, in the area known as Las
Longues Tailles. From the early 19th c. on interest had
been aroused by the many Gallo-Roman ruins at the foot
of the hill called the Butte du Chateau Julien. A fanum
was found with a cella 7 m square, ringed with a 13 m
peristyle and with a concrete courtyard in front of it.
Seven smallish rooms (3-4 m each side) were uncovered
next to the fanum, to the E. One of these is built around
a circle made of broken tiles. These adjoining rooms may
be houses or, more likely, altars. An inventory of the
many coins found on the site show that it was occupied
for a long time, up to the mid 4th c.; this is confirmed by
the ordinary ware and sigillata found here. The most
spectacular finds are some miniature bronzes (average
ht. 3 cm), amazingly well preserved: a ram, a retiarius,
a key, fibulas, letters provided with holes for attachment,
and some terracottas (Epona).
BIBLIOGRAPHY
M. Peigné-Delacourt,
Supplément aux
recherches sur l'emplacement de Noviodunum et de divers
autres lieux du Soissonnais (1859) 88-90; E. Will, “Informations archéologiques,”
Gallia 25, 2 (1967) 190-91;
J. Desbordes,
Gallia 31 (1973) 327.
P. LEMAN
