During
the
summer
holidays
of
1973,
two
teachers,
René
Caïrou
and
Raymond
Sabrié,
who
are
interested
in
the
archaeological
heritage
of
Narbonne,
were
attracted
by
a
large
empty
building
site
that
runs
south
of
the
cemetery of Cité. They think it could be a nice excavation site.
However,
the
Ministry
of
Finance
has
just
acquired
the
site
to
build
the
Hôtel
des
Impôts.
While
R.
Caïrou
asks
permission
to
undertake
an
archaeological
intervention
to
the
owner,
R.
Sabrié
starts
witht
the
first
samples,
first
manually,
then,
given
the
depth
of
the
remains,
with
the
help
of
a
machine.
Ancient
structures
are
found
everywhere.
A
first
stripping
of
a
certain
depth
reveals
walls
that
will
later
reveal
themselves
to
be
those
of
a
paleochristian
basilica
and
a
large
portico with a mosaic.
The
Archaeological
Research
Group
of
Narbonne
(GRAN),
of
which
Y.
Solier
takes
the
presidency,
is
created
at
the
end
of
1973.
But
for
almost
a
year,
from
February
1974
to
February
1975,
the
GRAN
stopped
the
work
to
devote itself to the rescue of a necropolis located on Avenue of the Grande Armée in the Razimbaud district.
The
association,
chaired
from
1985
by
R.
Sabrié,
continues
to
conduct
excavations
at
the
Clos
de
la
Lombarde
and
maintains
the
site
until
today.
Every
year,
students participate in excavation courses.
Given
the
interest
of
the
remains
found
at
the
Clos
de
la
Lombarde,
Mr.
Barruol,
Director
of
Antiquities
of
Languedoc
Roussillon,
intervenes
so
that
the
land
is
transferred
from
the
Ministry
of
Finance
to
the
Ministry
of
Culture thus saving the site.
Between
1975
and
1983,
the
"House
with
the
Porticoes"
is
gradually
uncovered
as
well
as
the
early
Christian
basilica.
The
excavation
proves
difficult
because
of
the
discovery
of
many
painted
coatings
that
very
often
neglected
by
archaeologists
until
the
1970s
and
even
thereafter.
Their
careful
removal
requires
a
lot
of
time,
patience
and
the
development
of
a
technique.
The
study
and
restoration
of
the
wall
paintings
began
in 1976 and is still ongoing today.
After
excavating
the
northwestern
areas
of
the
House
with
the
Large
Triclinium
until
1985,
the
excavation
work
moves
into
the
space
along
the
Cemetery.
New
houses
are
identified
and
partially
uncovered
until
1994:
house
IV,
house
VI
and
house
VII.
Street
C
and
the
secondary
cardo
(north-south
street)
A
are
partially
excavated.
Interventions
in
this
area
became
necessary
because
of
a
museum
building
project
that
would
have
showcased
the
"House with the Porticoes".
Between
1995,
the
date
from
which
excavations
are
planned,
and
1997,
the
House
with
the
Large
Triclinium
(House
III)
is
fully
excavated.
From
1998,
work
continues
on
the
area
occupied
by
bathhouses
in
the
southeast
part
of
the
site
and
on
the
secondary
cardo
D.
In
this
sector,
artisanal
establishments
are
being
discovered.
At
the
entrance
of
the
site
(block
II)
and
at
the
bottom
of
the
terrain
(block
IV),
houses
were
also
identified
and
mosaics
were
found
confirming
the
presence
of
a
residential
area
occupied
by
beautiful
domus
(Roman
townhouses).
As
excavations
progress,
the
GRAN
temporarily
protects
the
remains
with
sand
and
performs
regular
cleaning of the excavation site.
It
worth
to
remember
that
in
1991
a
long-term
lease
was
signed
between
the
State
and
the
city
of
Narbonne
about this site which was then formally registered and classified in 2007.
But the Clos de la Lombarde site has not yet revealed all its secrets.
History of the excavations
IMAGES OF THE RESTORATION OF THE WALL PAINTINGS
