The renovation works of the royal castle of Villers-Cotterêts, in the Aisne, were launched, under the impetus of the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, two years ago. At the end of this vast project, scheduled to last until 2023, this royal residence built in 1528 under François I, will have regained its splendor of yesteryear. In parallel with the work of the workers, archaeologists from Inrap are carrying out preventive excavations. It is in a room of the royal residence of the castle that a rare object was unearthed.
If they follow the restoration of the castle from the beginning, it is only since the beginning of January that the archaeologists of Inrap have tackled the follow-up of the site in the royal house. It was a good thing for them since, while inspecting a room in the north wing of this part of the castle, they discovered the matrix of a seal “in a pocket of coals”. A seal is a wax seal that allowed you to seal a document while adding your signature. There, it is therefore the object, in bronze, which made it possible to leave the imprint on the hot wax.
A 6th century object listed nowhere
According to Inrap, this small object, 22 mm wide by 17 mm high, was certainly lost by its owner near a fireplace. On the engraved side of the matrix, we can distinguish Saint George as a rider who overlooks a dragon, says Inrap. It is surrounded by a legend in Gothic letters. Archaeologists deduce that the object dates from the 15th century thanks to the specific armor worn by the rider.
Even if this seal is not listed in any archive, Inrap was able to identify its provenance. In the conditional, the Institute explains that the object would belong to the prior of the Saint-Georges monastery which was located in Villers-les-Moines, near the castle of Villers-Cotterêts. From this discovery and all of their work on site, the archaeologists hope to learn lessons about the relationship between the castle and its political-historical environment.