Earliest Occupation and the 2021 Excavation of Castle Hill
The Castle Hill in Nice first shows human activity in the Neolithic, around 3 000 BCE, as the earliest documented occupation. In 2021, the Service d’Archéologie Nice Côte d’Azur (SANCA) carried out a major, planned excavation that uncovered medieval burial layers and architectural remains, confirming distinct phases of use from a Neolithic settlement to a medieval cemetery. The work added new data to the long sequence of studies that began in 1828 and resumed regularly after 2006, without implying continuous habitation.
Archaeological Remains on the Castle Hill
The Castle Hill site hosts a cathedral, a cemetery, a cloister‑like building, and a quadrangular structure, all uncovered through successive excavations. The earliest occupation dates to the Neolithic, around 3000 BCE, as evidenced by the first layers found in 1828. Subsequent digs in 1859 and after World II revealed the cathedral’s five major construction phases, with reconstructions in the 11th, 13th, and 15th centuries. Since 2015, work has focused on the medieval cemetery, whose four phases span from the 9th to the 18th centuries, confirmed by radiocarbon dating.
Chronology of recent excavations
Since 2015, archaeological work has focused on the medieval cemetery and its burials. These works have allowed for a better understanding of the site's organization. The cemetery is organized in four phases, the first seeming to begin in the 9th century, while the last ended in the 18th century.
Phases of the Medieval Cemetery
Since 2010, excavations have revealed an organization into four phases, with the first seemingly beginning in the 9th century and the last ending in the 18th century according to radiocarbon dates. The site comprises several elements: a cathedral, a cemetery, a building assimilated as being the canons' cloister, and a quadrangular building named ensemble 2. The earliest occupations date back to the Neolithic (around 3000 BC), although current excavations focus on the medieval cemetery and its burials since 2015. The destruction of the military citadel in 1706 marked the end of the cathedral's existence during the 18th century.
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