Louis Bonnamour, distinguished French protohistorian and long-standing member of the UISPP, has passed away, leaving behind an indelible mark on the field of fluvial archaeology. A specialist in the Saône and in the cultures of the Bronze and Iron Ages, he distinguished himself over decades through the meticulous exploration of riverside habitation sites and the remains of ancient boats, most notably the emblematic excavation of the Late Bronze Age settlement of the Gué des Piles at Chalon in the 1980s. Aboard the vessel Prehistoria, he also undertook extensive fluvial survey campaigns along the Saône, contributing decisively to the archaeological knowledge of this river.
As an underwater archaeologist, he combined field expertise with scientific rigour, bringing new insight into ancient and medieval navigation in east-central France. As curator of the Musée Denon in Chalon-sur-Saône until 2005, he enabled generations of visitors and researchers to discover the region’s remarkable heritage.
The author of a masterful synthesis, ‘3000 ans de navigation sur la Saône’, Louis Bonnamour documented the diversity of traditional craft, the history of boats, and their construction techniques. His research on Gallo-Roman barges and prehistoric dugouts received international recognition. Always attentive to his contemporaries, he was also an ethnographer of the river, recording the memory of boatbuilders and river workers before it disappeared.
Louis Bonnamour will be remembered as a passionate, rigorous, and generous scholar who brought archaeology, history, ethnography, and pedagogy into dialogue. The scholarly community, his colleagues, and his friends pay tribute to a pioneer whose legacy will continue to inspire research in protohistory and underwater archaeology for many years to come.