Sur Vannez
Coordinates: 47 ° 23 '23.7 " N , 7 ° 0' 12.4" E ; CH1903: 567,142 / 248880
Sur Vannez is a fortified spur with finds from the Neolithic Age . The complex, protected on three sides by the natural surroundings and on the fourth side by a section wall, is located near Chevenez in the canton of Jura west of Porrentruy in northern Switzerland .
The course is framed by rocks in the west and steep slopes on the north and south sides. A wall 120 m long blocked access from the east. In this way a protected area with an area of 6000 m² was created. In Swiss parlance, this type of system is called "sealed off spur".
The archaeological excavations carried out in 1988 resulted in hardly any finds due to the rocky subsoil immediately below ground level , which prevents the deposition of possible cultural layers. The site served as a quarry at various times, as the limestone, which is ideal as a building material, can easily be split off from the rock. Therefore, neither the wall, an earthfill with limestone slabs with a base width of 4 to 5 m and a height of approx. 1.2 m, nor the ditch in front of it can be dated.
Only the discovery of a triangular Silex arrowhead and the comparison of cultures with similar systems in the Free County of Burgundy indicate the emergence of Sur Vannez in the Middle Neolithic. The older research had concluded that it was a Roman military camp. However, the investigations could not confirm this assumption.
literature
- Guide archéologique du Jura et du Jura bernois, pp. 39–40. Edited by Société jurassienne d'Emulation. Porrentruy 1997.