In Hyères, the archaeological site of Olbia continues to reveal its history
The editorial staff Published on 07/13/2025 at 05:15, updated on 07/13/2025 at 05:15
While the work to redevelop the Almanarre road continues, archaeologists are also carrying out preventive excavations on portions of land affected by future developments. Thus, not far from the site of Olbia, a Greek city founded around 300 BC, a necropolis, which was discovered in 1990 by Michel Bats, former head of excavations for the historic monument (1), is currently being exhumed ( Var-matin, June 15). On the seafront, a new hole was dug and excavated for 15 days before being closed. An external facing (2) of the enclosure was unearthed, not of Greek origin, but rather " a later reassembly from the Roman period ," explains Patrick Digelman, head of this preventive excavation operation led by the Department and Inrap (3).
Press stone...In this wall, a stone press, fragments of a tiled concrete floor were reused - the concreting technique was already mastered by the Romans - as well as the remains of a vat... " It's interesting, it shows that the town developed outside Olbia. There were craft activities, oil pressing or wine pressing, we don't know yet ." Their study will make it possible to date the different layers explored at a depth of 2 meters.
These explorations, which must be kept to a given time and depth, can sometimes leave a feeling of incompleteness. This is the whole dilemma of these excavations, which sooner or later find themselves covered by a road, a parking lot, a pylon, unless exceptional discoveries are made. " It's a big problem, the solution of which is never easy ," says Michel Bats. " We have examples of this in Marseille itself ." He himself, in his time, made a stand in front of the shovel, in vain, to prevent the construction of the Almanarre nautical base " partly on the corner tower " of the rampart, even if it could have been excavated preventively.
Olbia, a Greek city classified as a historical monument, dating back to 325 BC, an advanced bastion of Massilia, which later became a Roman city, with an exceptional healing and leisure spa... Michel Bats, now 83 years old, is the one who revealed its habitat and lifestyles, the only archaeologist to have excavated an entire island, of which only part remains, which is the one visited by the public. " Unfortunately, we did not keep the three houses from the Greek period, which were filled in. It seemed impossible to keep them in their original state ," he regrets.
How did you start working in Olbia?
It's simple. I first arrived in Olbia in 1962. I had just passed my second baccalaureate and I was lucky enough to have Jacques Coupry as my Greek Latin teacher, who since 1947 had been excavating here on the site, as much as the farmers would let him dig holes in their fields, before he succeeded in 1947 in having the State buy back these lands.
How were the excavations organized?
Jacques Coupry's goal was to understand the extent of the site and how it is organized. He discovered 40 islets, and I excavated islet 6. He excavated the northern rampart at the edge of the agricultural land, but also the eastern rampart. On the southern side, only Roman-era walls were visible, until 1974. I saw them gradually fall into the sea, due to the lack of protection of the coast. So much so that today, the sea is advancing into the city. The western rampart is still within the walls of Pomponiana. In 1989, however, we managed to obtain a transfer. Pomponiana donated to the city of Hyères the entire strip of land containing the rampart, next to the local road. All that remains is to materialize this transfer, by cutting off the road, which was to be replaced by a path, at the foot of the rampart. We have, so to speak, the entire city: the interior, the ramparts, the access roads, and perhaps part of the necropolis... There is no other place in France where we have an ancient Greek territory in one piece. In Marseille, Agde, Arles... we have pieces. Here, it is unique and the City owns everything. What more could you ask for?
Var-Matin
