| Geographical range | France |
|---|---|
| Period | Neolithic |
| Dates | 4500–3500 BC |
| Preceded by | Cerny culture |
| Followed by | Seine-Oise-Marne culture,Véraza culture in southern Languedoc,Treilles culture [fr] in theCausses,Ferrières culture in eastern Languedoc, andLa Couronne culture [fr] in Provence |
Chasséen culture is the name given to thearchaeological culture ofprehistoric France of the LateNeolithic, which dates to roughly between 4500 BC and 3500 BC. The name "Chasséen" derives from thetype site nearChassey-le-Camp (Saône-et-Loire).
It covered an area roughly corresponding with the actual French regions ofOccitanie andProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. The septentrional Chasséen culture spread throughout the plains and plateaux of France, including theSeine basin and the upperLoire valleys, and extended to the present-day départments ofHaute-Saône,Vaucluse,Alpes-de-Haute-Provence,Pas-de-Calais, andEure-et-Loir. Excavations atBercy (inParis) have revealed a Chasséen village (4000 BC - 3800 BC) on the right bank of the Seine; artifacts include wood canoes, pottery, bows and arrows, and wood and stone tools.
Chasséens were sedentary farmers (rye,panic grass,millet,apples,pears,prunes) and herders (sheep,goats,oxen,pigs). They lived in huts organized into small villages (100-400 people). Their pottery was little decorated. They had no metal technology (which appeared later) but mastered the use offlint.
By roughly 3500 BC, the Chasséen culture in France gave way to the late Neolithic transitionalSeine-Oise-Marne culture (3100BC - 2000 BC) in Northern France and to a series of archaeological cultures inSouthern France.
An article published in 2020 provided the genetic results of several individuals buried in the Le Crès site (Béziers), ZAC Agora site (Cugnaux), and La Terrasse site (Villeneuve-Tolosane), three males had Y-chromosome haplogroup I2a1a2, where other three males had I1a2b4~, I2 and I2a1b1a2b1a2a2b1b1.[3] From the Champ du Poste necropolis (Carcassonne), three individuals were genetically characterized, and the two Y-chromosome haplogroups found were different: G2a2a1a2a1 and H2m.[4]
Provence stelae with chevron ornamentation are relatively well dated. They have always been dated to the Middle Neolithic, and more exactly to the Late Chasséen.
The Owl Goddess of western Europe appears in many variations on an unwavering theme; on this stone stele her face is surrounded by a squared-off border of opposed chevrons. Late Neolithic of Provence, Final Chassean culture (Lauris-Purvert, Bouches-de-Rhone, s. France; c. end of 4th mill. BC. H. 30.1 cm