Each year, the Journées de l’Archéologie opens a window on what lies beneath our feet for the general public. Remains, objects, traces of past habitats, fieldwork trades and investigative methods — a wealth of clues and techniques that help us read the past. For one weekend, archaeologists, mediators and heritage sites throw open their doors and share their expertise, showing how history is built, bit by bit, from discoveries that are sometimes minuscule.
In Saint-Denis, just outside Paris, the Fabrique de la Ville embraces the challenge. Driven by the city’s Unité d’archéologie, this venue aims to preserve, study, and pass on the archaeological heritage of Saint-Denis. This heritage is linked to the city’s ancient and medieval history, a place shaped around its basilica, its crafts, and its many urban development projects.
Located on rue du Cygne, the Fabrique de la Ville also catches the eye with its distinctive look. Protected by a red-and-white framework reminiscent of a circus tent, the site houses an old building partially exposed, where you can read the different layers of construction. A striking reminder that Île-de-France still holds a living memory beneath its streets and neighborhoods.
An archaeological funfair in Saint-Denis! Come and try the fairground games designed by the archaeologists of the Archaeology Unit: duck fishing, the hammer game, target shooting... with a medieval and Dionysian twist!
As part of the European Archaeology Days, the Archaeology Unit opens the doors to the City Factory: discover the Swan islet, an excavated artisan workshop site studied from 2009 to 2017, and climb freely up the scaffolding of the “Mushroom House” which, under its Patrick Bouchain–signed tarp, shelters two of Saint-Denis’s oldest houses!
The Artefact93 association presents an immersive installation focused on living archaeology: inside a diamond-shaped yurt, furnished with carpets and seating, a poetically charged ambience will unfold thanks to an aerial installation. Visitors will encounter sound and visual reconstructions drawn from interviews conducted during JEA 2025, exploring questions such as: "When you hear archaeology, what comes to mind?" and "What does heritage evoke for you?" Surrounding the yurt, an exhibit of objects inspired by Saint-Denis's archaeological heritage invites a gradual stroll, shaping an immersive parcours that blends memory, contemporary creation, and archaeology.
As part of the European Archaeology Days, the Déchets d'arts association and the City of Saint-Denis Archaeology Unit invite you to a public, roughly thirty-minute performance centered on water. This live show, drawn from the project’s various stages, will blend performance, textile set design, and a bodily presence within the scaffolding of the "house-on-scaffold." conceived as a sensitive, immersive experience, this presentation will invite audience members to discover a poetic, collective interpretation of landscape changes and the issues surrounding water.
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Dates and Opening Time
On June 13, 2026
Location
The City Factory
4 Rue du Cygne
93200 Saint Denis
