The Rochelongue underwater site and the coastal mobility in West Languedoc (France) during the transit from Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age

Abstract

This paper examines the material culture of the Rochelongue underwater site by providing key information to better understand traditional discussions about the site, such as its chronology, cultural attribution and nature. This paper, however, focuses on the concept of coastal mobility as an approach that provides access to a much broader assessment of the local population in terms of maritime cultural contact. Maritime interactions are vital in order to understand socioeconomic changes and processes in culture contact and colonial settings in western Languedoc, which occurred during the seventh and sixth centuries B.C. The direct network that shows the Rochelongue underwater site by studying the distribution of metallic objects from the assemblage allows the discussion about the necessity of further investigation in the analysis of local coastal mobility to better understand connectivity and cultural encounters during Late Bronze Age-Early Iron Age in Western Mediterranean.