This collected volume of papers derives from a round table held in Dijon in 2009 as part of the ‘INCUBO’ research project on the cult places of Burgundy. Its scope has been widened to include case studies from outside the region and illustrate current research methods on religious sites in Gaul. The editorial introduction sets out the aims of this project and raises some central questions that reflect the emphasis of the volume: What is distinctive about a cult place? What allows us to identify it in the archaeological record? How do we approach sites known only from their inscriptions?

P. Méniel reviews the contribution of archaeozoology to the study of sanctuaries over the past 20 years, outlining a shift from feasting to other forms of sacrificial rites with increasing Romanisation. K. Gruel looks at the role of sanctuaries in the monetary economy, stressing temporal and regional variation and the multiple functions of coinage within the ritual context. A useful overview of the evidence for the ritual offering of coins is given by L. Popovitch. M.-Th. Raepsaet-Charlier discusses the epigraphic evidence for the cult places of the Lingones, given the perennial difficulties associated with attempting to identify civitas boundaries. She emphasises the importance of contextual study.

A paper by I. Fauduet et al. discusses earlier inventories of Gallo-Roman temple sites and the new project database. It is clear that the great increase in known sites has made it timely to revisit regional studies, although the authors highlight the need for collaborative work across regional and period boundaries. The impact of recent discoveries on our knowledge of the subject is emphasised by M. Joly and Ph. Barral's review of the past 20 years' work at the site of Mirebeau-sur-Beze. It shows how excavating a larger area has completely altered interpretation of the site, and is a plea for the continuing necessity of such work. The quality and scale of recent research projects on Gallo-Roman sanctuaries is demonstrated by a number of papers. Important antiquarian excavations have been re-evaluated at Alesia (O. de Cazanove et al.), Autun (papers by Y. Laubaune and C. Duthu), and Mont Beuvray (Ph. Barral et al.). These are useful and well-illustrated summaries of recent excavations and also show the value and quality of antiquarian work that has at times been disregarded.

From beyond Burgundy, there are papers by L. Laüt on the forest sanctuary of Petits Jardins (Allier), D. Vermeersch on the religious complex of Vaux-de-la-Celle at Genainville (Val d'Oise), and J.-L. Paillet and D. Tardy on the temple of Mercury at Puy de Dôme. The latter follows the theme of re-evaluating earlier excavations, with some interesting analysis of routes of approach to the monument. The contribution of J.-L. Schenck-David on the sacred sites of the Pyrenees highlights the gaps in our understanding of this region, which would benefit from the integrated approaches currently being applied to Burgundy.

A paper by M. Demierre and M. Poux looks at methodological issues with a comparison of the distribution of small finds from the sanctuary and adjacent settlement areas of Corent (Puy-de-Dôme), made possible by large-scale excavation and good spatial data. Their findings echo those of Gruel and Méniel, with the patterning of some categories of finds (such as faunal remains, weapons) seen as indicative of the context and others (coins, tools) less specific, but with differing functions according to their context of deposition. This fits in with the aims of the volume, reiterated by J. Scheid in his summing-up. He acknowledges the difficulty of resolving the questions of religious status and function that a historian would perhaps wish to answer and that have tended to preoccupy epigraphers. Scheid recognises the value of archaeology for getting at rites and practices at the level of the individual and community. This volume does indeed show the remarkable richness and variability of the evidence at the site-specific level and a perhaps justified reluctance to indulge in general theorising. Broader landscape-based studies are less well represented here and it will be interesting to see how these strands of research are brought together at a regional level.