'Breakthrough' archeological find could confirm location of Paris's original settlement

An ancient wall discovered beneath Paris was described as a "major breakthrough" on Wednesday by France's culture ministry, with the archaeological find possibly confirming the location of the city's original settlement. A roughly 20-metre (65-foot) wall dating from the Gallo-Roman period was discovered in Paris this summer beneath a hospital on the Ile de la Cité, a stone's throw from Notre-Dame Cathedral in the heart of the City of Light. The stone-and-wood find is thought to be a fragment of the ramparts of Lutetia – the ancient name for Paris – built by the Gallic Parisii tribe which lived along the river Seine in the Iron Age. The Ile de la Cite has traditionally been regarded as the centre of Lutetia, but a rival theory, backed by archaeological research, contends that it was in Nanterre, a suburb to the west. Read moreParis neighbourhoods: Inside the historic 1st arrondissement "We may be looking at one of the most important remains ever discovered for understanding Gallic Lutetia," Culture Minister Catherine Pegard said in a statement from her ministry which was sent to AFP. "Scientific caution still requires that we verify its function and its chronology, but the convergen...