Around the experimental piles at the end of the process of thixotropic hardening of the soil was to dig the pit and a detailed description of its walls was made. Inspection showed that moraine loams in this area were very deformed and compacted. A multilayer shell formed around each pile. It was especially compacted in comparison with the surrounding soil and a vertical concentric layer was clearly observed in Pay, formed from overlying soils, pierced by piles when immersed.