In addition to his teaching activities, he was also interested in archeology. He was Director of historic antiquities of Midi-Pyrénées from 1946 to 1981 and member of the Board of archaeological research. He was president of the "Société archéologique du Midi de la France" from 1958 to 1988. He led excavations on the site of the Battle of Gergovia and especially in his native region of Aquitaine.