Grand armoury of Roman Legion unveiled by AMU Archaeologists

 Image Credit : Andrzej Biernacki

The first traces of the monumental stone structure at the ancient site of a former Roman legionary camp in Novae, Bulgaria, was discovered by AMU archeologists a few years ago. Since then, Dr. Elena Klenina and Dr. Andrzej B. Biernacki have worked on the site of the former legionary camp belonging to the Roman soldiers of the First Italian Legion. Last year, they determined that it was an arsenal – armory. This year’s excavations made it possible to learn about the subsequent history of the area.

The structure built by the Roman soldiers was huge, it occupied about 1800 square meters. It was erected in the first half of the second century. Its base consisted of six monumental rectangular pillars arranged in two rows. They were made of precisely matched, hexagonal blocks of limestone. In the opinion of the researchers, it is the most monumental building, discovered in all known legion camps along the Danube River.

Credit : Andrzej Biernacki

Novae was an ancient greek city of Thrace among other cities of Moesias' province . At present we use the name of Novae (Nouae), although the toponym might have referred to the canabae (canabae legionis I Italicae Novae), when the castra itself had the name of castra legionis I Italicae. The literary sources give the name of Novae or in Accusative form Novas (Itin. Ant. 221, 4; Jord., Get., 101, Tab. Peut. VIII, 1; Not. Dign. Or. XL, 30, 31; Eugipp., 44, 4) and the Greek transcription – Nόβας given by Procopius (De aed. IV, 11), Theophanes Confessor (Chron., p. 423, 426, 436, ed. J. Classen) and Anonymous Ravennatis (IV, 7). The Greek form Nόβαι appears rather rare (Hierocl. Synecd. 636, 6; Theoph. Sim. VII, 2.16; VIII, 4.3-4); earlier form mentioned by Ptolemy is Nooῦαι (Ptol. III, 10.10).

Roman military presence in the Lower Danubian region started in the middle of the 1st century AD. Around AD 45 Legio VIII Augusta, which took part in the suppression of the Greek uprising, was placed here and founded its castrum. At the same time the province of Moesia was created.. 

MOESIA, Istros. 4th century BC. Drachm (Silver, 5.70 g 12), circa 350. Two facing male heads side by side, one upright and the other inverted - a tête-bêche pair. Rev. ΙΣΤΡΙΗ Sea eagle standing left on dolphin; below dolphin, monogram of ΑΠ

“At the end of the 4th century construction was rebuilt and then it also changed its function: instead of military installations, it started to store grain and other food necessary to keep the legion stationed here,” said Dr Klenina, head of the International Interdisciplinary Archeological Expedition “Novae” of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań.

Inside the uncovered structure, archaeologists found numerous artefacts, including over one hundred bronze coins. They were minted in the first quarter of the fourth century AD and a dozen or so coins date from the times of Emperor Licinius I (308-324 AD).

Special attention of archaeologists, however, was pointed by the limestone head sculpture depicting a syncretic deity – Dionysus-Sabazios. According to Dr. Biernacki, an AMU archaeologist who has been involved in work at Novae for many years, the artefact may indicate the arrival of settlers from very distant regions. From the artistic side, the sculpture exhibits distinctly middle-eastern influences with elements of the Greek art of the archaic period of the 1st or 2nd century AD.

This AMU research is carried out in cooperation with the Institute of Archeology of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

Grand armoury of Roman Legion unveiled by AMU Archaeologists

In Bulgaria was Found the Tomb of an Ancient Greek Ruler

Presumably the tomb belongs to the ancient Greek ruler of Thrace.

Monumental tomb of the III century BC was discovered by archaeologists in Bulgaria near the village of Manole near Plovdiv.

The Director of the regional archaeological Museum of Plovdiv Kostadin Kisiov reported that the structure has dimensions of 7 by 7 m and height 5 m.

The age of the tomb is confirmed by the identified ancient Greek bronze coins, carved in the third century of our era.

The study of the tomb in Manole continues. It is assumed that the search for the entrance to its interior will be gone for about a month.

In Bulgaria was Found the Tomb of an Ancient Greek Ruler

Incredible “Ship Graveyard” Discovered In Black Sea Features 2,500 Years Of Perfectly Preserved Ships

A shipwreck lover’s dream has been discovered in the azure waters of the Black Sea: around 60 wrecks, from the Byzantine era to the 19th century, revealing 2,500 years of maritime history.

Described as a “ship graveyard” due to the sheer numbers, the plethora of ships found is not only incredible but some of them are in astonishingly good shape too.

The three-year project, Black Sea MAP, from the University of Southampton’s Centre for Maritime Archeology and funded by the EEF, is one of the largest marine archeological projects ever staged, and to begin with it wasn’t even searching for ships.

Researchers set out to complete geophysical surveys of the Black Sea to study the effects of climate change and how it had changed the environment along the Bulgarian coast. However, they found a whole lot more in this submerged world.

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The earliest ship they found dates to the 4-5th century, and they go right through the Roman Empire, 10th-century Byzantine, and the Ottoman Empire, covering a period of 2,500 years and offering fascinating insight into seafaring routes and traditions.  

Researchers have called the discovery “unrivaled”, the ships’ locations revealing ancient patterns of trade, warfare, and communication as well as confirming structural ship design and features that could only have been guessed at or glimpsed in drawings before now.

‘‘We have never seen anything like this before,” said Dr Kroum Batchvarov, from the University of Connecticut, in an emailed statement. “This is history in the making unfolding before us.”

The researchers used remotely operated vehicles (ROV) with high-resolution 3D cameras as well as high-def cameras, a laser scanner, lights, and geophysical equipment to survey the seabed. 

Luckily, below around 150 meters (492 feet), the Black Sea is anoxic, meaning the organisms that usually feast on anything organic cannot survive because there is little light or oxygen, so many of the ships are in surprisingly excellent condition.

“There's one medieval trading vessel where the towers on the bow and stern are pretty much still there,” Ed Parker, CEO of Black Sea MAP, said. 

“It's as if you are looking at a ship in a movie, with ropes still on the deck and carvings in the wood."

Despite the excitement garnered by such a find, the team is keeping the locations of the ships secret to protect them while they study them. It wasn’t that long ago that the earliest human skeleton in the Americas was discovered by amateur divers, only for them to put it on social media and by the time excited scientists turned up it had been stolen. 

Luckily, these researchers had a television crew, one who has previously worked on the BBC's incredible David Attenborough-led Blue Planet, follow them through the three-year project. The incredible findings will be coming to a TV near you soon. 

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Incredible “Ship Graveyard” Discovered In Black Sea Features 2,500 Years Of Perfectly Preserved Ships