Non-destructive Sensing Projects beneath the Auxerre cathedral

Michel Dabas (1) , Harry B Titus (2)

1 Sisyphe
2 Wake Forest University

Teams of researchers from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique led by Michel Dabas recently made electrostatic and radar surveys to locate structural elements lying beneath the paving in the nave of Auxerre Cathedral. While the radar survey made use of established technology, the electrostatic survey was conducted with prototype equipment developed by CNRS/Garchy personnel. Technically, the descriptive superiority of the electrostatic method was demonstrated, though the radar survey provided more accurate indications of the depth of sub-surface features. Computerized maps presenting the collected data in color-coded form are here interpreted by the authors and coordinated with documentary and physical evidence pertaining to the building history of Auxerre Cathedral. The primary goal of the project was to gather information about the eleventh-century cathedral that was gradually replaced in the Gothic period. The data, however, permitted the authors to develop hypotheses about pre-Romanesque structures and about the construction sequence of the extant Gothic building.

Domains: Geophysics [physics.geo-ph]; Archaeology and Prehistory; History

Michel Dabas, Harry B Titus. Non-destructive Sensing Projects beneath the Auxerre cathedral. GESTA - the International Center of Medieval Art, 2001, XL (2), pp.181-188. ⟨hal-02925477⟩