Sauveterre-La-Lémance: Museum and Mesolithic Period

A themed introduction to Sauveterre-La-Lémance leads back to prehistory: the SauveTerre Museum of Prehistory is dedicated to prehistory and science. Since 2011, it has been housed in the former municipal market hall. The archaeological site at Martinet also offers a connection to prehistory, but in a different way. For your planning, you can therefore consider an exhibition and a self-guided site with information panels as two distinct ways to visit.

The museum and its exhibition

The permanent exhibition covers 450 m² across two levels and is divided into four sections. It focuses on the Sauveterrian period of the Mesolithic and how humans adapted to a constantly changing environment. It thus combines the chronological context of a prehistoric period with the question of how people dealt with changing environmental conditions. If you are interested in prehistory, you will find both a clearly identified period and the theme of human adaptation here.

The exhibition design includes lighting effects, videos, touchscreens, facsimiles that visitors can handle, audio stories, and taxidermy specimens. Models also help visitors explore the world of our ancestors. The ways of presenting the material range from looking and listening to handling facsimiles and using touchscreens. The exhibition areas are connected by a glass elevator. The museum visit is shaped both by the subjects covered and by the different ways they are presented.

The discovery trail combines a visit to indoor and outdoor areas. It is open to the public and can be explored independently. A guide booklet is available on request at reception. You can therefore explore the trail without a guide; ask for the booklet if you would like additional guidance through the exhibition.

Prehistory in the Lémance Valley

The name Sauveterrian also has a historical context in the Lémance Valley. In the 1920s, archaeologist Laurent Coulonges studied prehistoric sites there. At Martinet, he discovered a previously unknown prehistoric culture that became internationally known. He named it Sauveterrian and dated it to approximately 8,000 to 7,000 years ago. This connects the term, which also appears in the permanent exhibition, with the valley’s archaeological history.

At Martinet: archaeological site and walk

The Martinet archaeological site is classified as a site of archaeological interest and can be explored independently on a walk through the woodlands along the banks of the Lémance. Information panels explain how people in the Mesolithic used natural resources. The site offers an outdoor walk as a way to explore this subject, with the panels focusing on how people used their surroundings.

The two sites differ mainly in how they present their subject matter: at the museum, four exhibition sections and a range of media guide visitors through topics related to prehistory; at Martinet, the focus is on a self-guided walk and information panels. This comparison can help you decide which aspect to explore during your stay: the exhibition on the Mesolithic and environmental change, or the information about resource use at the archaeological site.

Discover more destinations: Caubon-Saint-Sauveur, Cavarc, Sos, Casteljaloux, Madaillan, Frégimont, Saint-Colomb-De-Lauzun, Anthé.

For the broader travel overview: Lot Et Garonne.