Couze (Dordogne) Explained

The Couze (pronounced as /fr/) is a 30.1adj=midNaNadj=mid tributary of the Dordogne in France, with its source between Fongalop and Bouillac, and its mouth in Port-de-Couze. The lower half of the stream runs between limestone cliffs. The main villages along the river and its small tributaries are Beaumont-du-Périgord, Montferrand-du-Périgord, Couze-et-Saint-Front and Saint-Avit-Sénieur.

Alongside the river many Paleolithic sites have been found, including the important sites of La Gravette which gave its name to the Gravettian, a major European prehistoric culture which lasted from more than 10,000 years between circa 33,000 BP and 21,000 BP; and Combe-Capelle. Remains from the Neolithic and later periods are more sparse, until habitation again increased in the Middle Ages.^[1]

Paleolithic sites

The first archaeological excavations started in the late 19th century, and intensified between 1900 and 1914. The main archaeologist working here was Denis Peyrony from Les Eyzies.^[1]

• La Gravette, eponymous site for the Gravettian culture, discovered in 1880
• Combe-Capelle, where in 1909 a skull was found which was thought to be 30,000 years old. Later research revised the date to 7,000 years old.
• La Cavaille, cave with a few engravings from the Périgordian period, discovered in 1934
• Les Jean-Blancs, where an engraving of a female figure dating to the Upper Magdalenian was found
• Termo-Pialat, discovered in 1911, where some engraved blocks were found

Medieval sites

• The large church of Saint-Avit-Sénieur is located on the Camino de Santiago coming from Vézelay, in the French region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté.

Notes and References

1. Book: Lenoir . Michel and Dibble, Harold L. . The Middle Paleolithic Site of Combe-Capelle Bas (France) . 1995 . UPenn Museum of Archaeology . 9780924171383 . 1–5 . https://books.google.com/books?id=RTV-rPUDUNAC&dq=denis+peyrony&pg=PA3 . Overview of the History of Prehistoric Research in the Couze Valley.