New creation, the Parc des Dames Blanches must be created on an area of 7000 square meters, between the town hall and Place Rogier. The archaeological discovery was made at the end of last week, when slaughtering a wall and the leveling of the land. The competent alderman made the decision to immediately stop the site in the area concerned and seized the Walloon Heritage Agency (AWAP) for an archaeological opinion.
The rest of the site continues. The stone and brick wall discovered during the work is visible at the edge of current earthworks along the rue des Dames Blanches. It could be linked to the old convent of the same name, dating from the 15th century, to the foundations of another old building or to a more recent structure, presenting less interest from an archaeological point of view. The contact made by the alderman with the AWAP is a legal obligation but also illustrates “A clear desire to respect and protect the Namur heritage“said Benoît Malisoux.
The initial excavations led by AWAP on the site of the future Parc des Dames Blanches were to last until April, but were interrupted last December. The reasons invoked were strong pollution of the soil and too short a delay, all the more in winter. The Historia community was then insurgent of this decision contrary to the heritage code, denouncing the behavior of the AWAP and the Minister of Heritage, Valérie Lescrenier (the committed).