Mont Ergé et sanctuaire d'Erge de Montsérié

Montsérié

Above the village of Montsérié, in the Hautes-Pyrénées, Mont Ergé bears an oppidum, a fortified hilltop village, protohistoric then Gallo-Roman. On its east slope, at about 620 metres, a place called Marto or cap del Martel housed a sanctuary. A god named Erge was worshipped there, and altars are also dedicated there to Mars. Between 1839 and 1841, the engineer Dominique-Jean-Louis Rumeau excavated the slope and took from it about a hundred altars and fragments, with terracotta cult objects and sculptures. One of these altars, kept in Toulouse, reads: ‘To the god Erge, Lucius Iulius Novalis fulfilled his vow’. Its inscription is dated between the early 2nd and the mid-3rd century. The number of altars varies according to the sources: 21 for Erge and 7 for Mars in a scholarly study, about a hundred in all on the departmental circuit. A small bronze mask found on the spot is dated to the 3rd or 2nd century BC, and its origin remains debated. Excavations of the oppidum continue today.

French Ministry of Culture — POP, autel votif au dieu Erge (Montsérié) ↗

Getting there: From the village of Montsérié (D526 road, parking at the village hall), the ‘Tour du mont Ergé’ trail is a 5.5 km loop, about 2 h, from 560 to 754 m (226 m of ascent), waymarked as a PR and rated easy. The visit is free and at no charge all year, with good shoes; it may be cancelled in bad weather. The entrance to the tumulus is a cavity more than 12 m deep: keep well back. One passage of the descent is done with a rope, and dogs must be kept on a lead. The sanctuary was on the east slope, at about 620 m. A display case next to the church (free entry) shows objects from the site. The coordinates give the village, from which one climbs to the oppidum.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound