Structural and Interpretative Deficiencies in Preventive Archaeology before the Last Glacial Maximum ; Carences structurelles et interprétatives dans l'archéologie préventive d'avant le Dernier Maximum glaciaire ; Structural and Interpretative Deficiencies in Preventive Archaeology before the Last Glacial Maximum: Reflections Based on Data from Île-de-France ; Carences structurelles et interprétatives dans l'archéologie préventive d'avant le Dernier Maximum glaciaire: Réflexions à partir des données franciliennes

International audience ; Palaeolithic data from preventive contexts comes mainly from two key regions in France, Hauts-de-France and New Aquitaine. Elsewhere, the lack of data has driven different interpretations: refuge areas vs no man’s land, areas crossed and sparsely inhabited, or hypotheses based on natural phenomena that were unfavourable to the conservation of sites or on the contrary, deeply buried sites that have remained inaccessible and therefore absent from the archaeological record. Archaeological practice has been put forward is an important factor for the difficulty in discovering Palaeolithic levels by many scholars. The structural deficiencies that are the source of these voids have been highlighted, as is the case in a publication by INRAP on the evaluation of Palaeolithic sites: desk and field archaeologists having little or no training in the detection of Palaeolithic sites, insufficient funding, logistical complexity… Sampling biases are also a key factor in the identification and characterisation of archaeological sites, but they seem to be greater when detecting Palaeolithic levels. Better consideration of these biases is essential in interpreting the hiatuses, gaps and the absence of settlement in the archaeological record. In Île-de-France known for its eponymous sites of Levallois or Chelles, the small number of detected Palaeolithic sites contrasts with the history of its regional research that provides a great quantity of varied data. Even with the presence of sedimentary contexts similar to those of Hauts-de-France, the methodological difficulties in the detection and interpretation of Palaeolithic sites are evident. For the last ten years, various institutions (SRA, INRAP, Communities, CNRS, volunteers) working together in an INRAP Scientific Activities Project (PAS) have tried to understand the origin of this discrepancy and, as far as possible, remedy it. This has led to a positive outcome with the discovery of many new sites and the excavation of ten Palaeolithic occupations. ...