Programme & Abstracts

In der Wasserstadt (Viziváros) von Aquincum (Budapest II. Bez.) hätten im Gegensatz zu den älteren Vermutungen nicht ein Lager, sondern zwei, vielleicht drei Kastelle im 1. Jh. n.Chr. angelegt werden können.
An den auf dem Bem Platz von A. Nagy 2021-2022 durchgeführten Ausgrabungen kamen mehr als ein Dutzend augusteisch-tiberischen Sigillaten (unter ihnen mehrere Exemplare mit Namenstempeln) ans Tageslicht.
Aus ihrer chronologischen Analyse ergab es sich, dass das erste Lager nicht um 50 b.Chr., sondern zur Zeit der Mission von Drusus, vielleicht während der Landnahme der Jazygen, zwische 17 und 20 n.Chr mit einigen anderen Militäranlagen an der Donau (Carnuntum, Arrabona) errichtet wurde.
Auf dem Bem Platz gehört das zweite Lager schon zu den claudischen Kastellen; das beweisen die in grösserer Menge gefundenen tiberisch-claudische Sigillaten. Das füher von K.Kérdő lokalisierte, von den obigen etwas südlicher freigelegte dritte Lager hätte ein neu nach Aquincum kommandierte Reitertruppe zwischen 68 und 89 n.Chr. errichten können.

Da oltre 150 anni la ricerca storica segue la toponomastica della Dacia romana. Inizialmente le fonti disponibili erano poche, solo letterarie e cartografiche. Lo sviluppo dell'epigrafia ha consentito notevoli progressi nel XX secolo, e le nuove scoperte portano sempre nuovi chiarimenti.
Un elemento nuovo è stato recentemente apportato dalla collocazione più precisa dei siti individuati sulla mappa della provincia, unitamente al ricorso allo status giuridico dei vari insediamenti. Nei primi due decenni del XXI secolo tale mappa si è arricchita di alcuni nuovi toponimi. Tuttavia, la toponomastica della provincia rimane poco conosciuta rispetto a quella di altri territori romani sul Danubio.
Con questa relazione si intende presentare lo sviluppo dell'interpretazione delle fonti e l’evoluzione delle controversie scientifiche su questi temi. L'intensificazione degli scavi di salvataggio negli ultimi anni richiederà sicuramente alcune rivalutazioni.

L’espansione del dominio romano comportò l’instaurarsi di rapporti politici e culturali di reciproca influenza con le popolazioni sottomesse. Sul piano amministrativo, se da un lato Roma impose proprie infrastrutture e propri funzionari, dall’altro riconobbe alle città, in Italia e nelle province, significativi margini di autonomia. In tale quadro non faceva eccezione l’amministrazione delle grandi arterie stradali lungo l’asse strategico del corridoio danubiano, il cui funzionamento si fondava sulla collaborazione tra i governatori, i rappresentanti dell’autorità imperiale e le comunità civiche. É questa interazione a costiuire l’oggetto del presente contributo, che intende mostrare come le strade non fossero soltanto infrastrutture indispensabili alla mobilità e al controllo del territorio, ma anche strumenti di autorappresentazione del potere e di integrazione amministrativa. Partecipando attivamente all’organizzazione dello spazio pubblico, le città negoziavano con l’autorità imperiale e contribuivano alla diffusione di modelli amministrativi condivisi. Le principali fonti per questo tipo di indagine sono i miliari, che nelle province considerate riportano, oltre al nome dell’imperatore, quello del governatore in carica e quello delle città responsabili del rifacimento di specifici tratti stradali. L’analisi di tali documenti è stata recentemente agevolata dalla pubblicazione dei volumi tematici del CIL XVII dedicati a Raetia e Noricum (2005) e alla Pannonia (2025), nonché dai lavori in corso per il volume relativo a Moesia e Thracia.

Der Beitrag bietet neue Einblicke in die römische Siedlungsgeschichte des oberen Gailtales. Sie wurden seit 2024 durch Forschungen der Abteilung Archäologie am Landesmuseum gewonnen und bilden derzeit den Forschungsschwerpunkt eines leader-Projektes. Ausgehend von Luftbildanalysen und geophysikalischen Untersuchungen wurde in der Ortschaft Kirchbach ein römischer Apsisbau feldarchäologisch untersucht, für den auch eine Deutung als öffentliches Gebäude zu erwägen ist.

Weitere Fundstellen römischer Gutshöfe ließen sich naturwissenschaftlich detektieren, so dass sich ein neuer naturtopographisch basierter römischer Besiedlungsraster abzeichnet. Die Untersuchungen der Heidenmauer zwischen Rattendorf und Jenig stellen ein spätantikes innerprovinziales, das obere Gailtal nach Osten sicherndes lineares Befestigungswerk dar, dass wohl im Zusammenhang mit der hochbedeutenden Nord-Süd-Alpentransversale an die Adria und deren Ausbau in valentinianischer Zeit zu sehen ist.

The settlement of Maglern on the Austrian-Italian border was already identified in the early 20th century as the successor of Meclaria mentioned by Paulus Diaconus. Epigraphic evidence for beneficiarii as well as rescue excavations indicated a Roman settlement at the foot of the so-called Schlossberg, located at the outskirts of the modern village.

Large-scale geophysical prospections conducted by the University of Innsbruck in 2021 and 2022 enabled, for the first time, the precise localisation and spatial definition of the vicus. Covering an area of at least 6.5 ha, several roads and architectural features were identified, including a possible mansio and/or statio. These results underline the settlement’s strategic position at a major crossroads between the Val Canale and the Gail Valley.

The material evidence indicates occupation from the Late La Tène period onwards. Coin finds and non-local imports attest to intensive contacts with Roman Italy prior to the 1st century AD and highlight the early economic connections to southern Noricum. Furthermore, lead and tin votives indicate a Roman sanctuary on the Schlossberg, with model-identical examples attested not only in Noricum but also in Pannonia.

Aelia Mursa (today Osijek, Croatia) was one of the last Roman cities to gain colonial status. Its importance, acquired before the end of the first half of the 2nd century, stemmed from the strategic location of the site developed besides the Drava River, i.e. at the most convenient crossing point over the easternmost section of the aforementioned water course and the surrounding marshes. The main challenge of archaeological research in Mursa lies in the fact that this area is densely urbanized and actively inhabited even today. Therefore, surveys which were conducted in Osijek in the last twenty years or so have mainly been consisted of rescue excavations and related to the construction of modern-day University campus. Mostly, they were focused on the western suburbium of the ancient city. In addition, several systematic excavations have been carried out at the site, revealing the main cardo of the Roman colony.

The aim of this paper is to present an overview and preliminary interpretation of the rescue excavations of the western suburbium of the Roman colony of Aelia Mursa, to consider its role in the wider urban context, and also to discuss the most recent survey results and theses.

The so called “bouleuterion” building at the agora of Nicopolis ad Istrum in Lower Moesia is among the most debated ones in the history of the ancient city’s research. Its chronology, layout and especially function (bouleuterion, imperial cult temple, library, tabularium etc.) have been examined numerous times in academic literature. In the light of recent publications including more detailed accounts of excavation history and archaeological data, this paper aims to revisit and reassess the current state of knowledge of the building and particularly its use as an imperial cult venue in the 2nd-3rd century AD.

Since 2024, the Regional Museum of History - Veliko Tarnovo (Bulgaria), in collaboration with the University of Verona (Italy), has been conducting archaeological excavations at Nicopolis ad Istrum (today Nikyup, region of Veliko Tarnovo). The investigations are conducted under ministerial concession and with the official designation of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. The investigations focus on an insula located south-west of the forum complex, in a previously unexplored sector of the city bounded by Decumanus no. 8 to the south, Cardo no. 5 to the west, and Decumanus no. 7 to the north (the decumanus maximus).

The first two excavation seasons have revealed the remains of a large public building directly facing Cardo no. 5 and the agora complex. Although the monument was heavily affected by spoliation in the late eighteenth century, its foundations are well preserved. Excavation has brought to light eight vaulted chambers constructed with stone blocks and bricks bonded with mortar and embedded in a substantial foundation layer of mortar and pebbles. The interiors of these chambers display clear traces of water infiltration, including calcareous deposits on the walls and a 2–3 cm-thick limestone layer on the floor surfaces.

The building’s plan is characterized by two lateral wings flanking a central apse, likely originally covered by a semi-dome. Numerous architectural fragments—architraves, cornices, and column bases—suggest a richly articulated decorative programme and a monumentally conceived elevation.

Based on its plan, construction techniques, and prominent urban position, the structure may tentatively be interpreted as a monumental fountain (nymphaeum), comparable to similar water monuments known from cities of the Roman East.

The intend lecture will discuss the preventive archaeological research carried out in 2024 on the territory of Castelu locality in Constanța county (Romania), for the implementation of a large infrastructure project.

The area of Castelu village is known in the specialized literature through many archaeological discoveries, chronologically framed from prehistory to the classical era, along with the early Middle Ages. The current locality and implicitly the ancient sites on its territory are located on the road that comes from Tomis (Constanța) to Axiopolis (Cernavodă) and implicitly, this is the most direct route between the Danube and the Black Sea coast, used from Antiquity to the present day.

The preventive archaeological research consisted of researching 4800 square meters, and on this occasion a number of 39 archaeological complexes were researched and recorded, with archaeological materials mainly dated to the Roman era (2nd-3rd centuries AD) and the Romano-Byzantine era (6th century AD), but also complexes dated to the Bronze Age, as well as a tomb with Scythian material. The 20 tombs (cremation and inhumation) researched here are dated to the Roman era, and they are part of a tumular necropolis belonging to a settlement located in the vicinity of the research. The tombs had a rich inventory, consisting of ceramic and glass vessels, the usual coin as an obol for Charon and occasional objects for adornment, in only one case these being made of gold. Among the most important pieces discovered here is a votive relief with the Thracian Knight and a bronze ring with the representation of dextrarum iunctio.

The Italian Valerii family is regarded as the most influential family in Poetovio. Its members left a clear imprint on the municipal administration of the city and beyond, especially if we consider Marcus Valerius Maximianus. As such, the family most likely also exerted an influence on the colonization of certain other Danubian provinces. Epigraphic monuments from these provinces could confirm – or refute – this assumption.

Of particular interest is the apparent connection between the southern Norican region (which, in addition to the Celeian area, may also include Poetovio and its surroundings) and Dacia. This connection was also established through legio XIII Gemina, which was stationed at Poetovio in the second half of the 1st century AD and was transferred to Apulum in Dacia at the turn of the 1st to the 2nd century. A survey of the Valerii in Dacia – or maybe even (if necessary) in a broader geographical context – could thus indirectly reveal the spread of influence of the Valerii, including those from Poetovio, across the Danubian provinces, with a particular emphasis on Dacia.

The incorporation of the Moesian territories into the Roman Empire generated, among many other phenomena, a gradual cultural integration at varying levels of intensity across various areas of the pre-Roman populations. Less intense in the province of Moesia and more pronounced in the provinces of Moesia Superior and Moesia Inferior, this phenomenon of cultural integration can be highlighted only through an epigraphic approach. To understand this phenomenon in depth, we must emphasize that it involves contact and, ultimately, confrontation between oral cultures and one written culture. Our approach aims to analyze the Illyrian, Thracian, and Celtic anthroponymy of Upper Moesia and to explore the complex mechanisms that explain this cultural integration.

As regards the Moesian territories, the number of bilingual inscriptions in Moesia Superior is much reduced compared to those in Moesia Inferior. Still, they are highly significant for illustrating the phenomenon of bilingualism in the Roman Empire. In my paper, I aim to analyze these bilingual inscriptions, focusing on several aspects: the degree of similarity between the Latin and Greek texts, the presence of code-switching (tag-switching), the ethnicity, the socio-cultural background of the individuals mentioned in the bilingual text, their legal, socio-professional status, and their connections with other provinces, mixed onomastic formulae, as well as other phenomena related to Greek-Latin and Latin-Greek bilingualism.

Funerary monuments of the Roman period were displayed in public spaces and often functioned as an important medium that conveyed messages to the wider community, through inscriptions and widely shared visual symbols. They also illuminate aspects of the past that are frequently overlooked in historical sources, namely the lives of non-elite individuals. This perspective is particularly valuable for provinces for which written evidence is scarce, especially the frontier regions of the Empire, where Roman and local cultural traditions intersected far from the imperial center. This paper addresses one aspect of this complex phenomenon: the funerary monuments of the autochthonous population of the province of Moesia Superior.

Through the analysis of the text and iconography of the monuments left behind by the local inhabitants of this Danubian province, the paper examines the articulation of identity within a new socio-political context – that of the Roman Empire. Selected monuments t analyzed as a case study, reveal the complexity of cultural interaction and demonstrate how their elements were deliberately combined to express social affiliation, status, and local traditions. The adoption of Roman funerary commemoration was not a passive act of assimilation, but a selective strategy through which local communities negotiated regional expression, emphasizing creolization rather than fixed cultural categories.

The present paper examines the connections of women in Pannonia with other provinces. These connections vary widely: in some cases, a husband comes from another province; in others, women’s roots can be traced to distant regions; elsewhere, an unusual name appears within a family. The main question is whether these seemingly random and individual pieces of evidence form a pattern, or at least allow for conclusions and new insights into the social history of Pannonia.

This paper examines the early Roman presence at the Magdalensberg in pre-annexation Noricum, highlighting the cultural and economic role of alliances—such as marriages, patron-freedman ties, and business collaborations—within Aquileian merchant families. Rather than seeing traders as isolated actors, it situates them within networks built through prior connections, marriages, and trust among slaves and patrons.

In frontier regions without stable Roman institutions, economic exchange relied on trust, reputation, and kinship networks. Drawing on epigraphic evidence and tesserae nummulariae, the study reconstructs the activities of Aquileian trading families expanding into new territories from the mid-first century BCE. These families organised commercial ventures through societates and relied on slaves and freedmen to manage operations, reducing risk and ensuring continuity. Furthermore, marriages reinforced alliances, capital, and inheritance strategies.

The Magdalensberg thus shows how culturally embedded family policies underpinned economic expansion and facilitated early market integration beyond direct Roman political control.

Si analizza come il regime comunista, al potere, consecutivamente dal 1948 al 1989 abbia condizionato e manipolato le attività accademiche, gli scavi archeologici, la nascita e la conduzione delle strutture museali. Questo periodo si suddivide in tre fasi, seguendo spesso le direttive sovietiche, anche se nell'ultima, l'aspetto nazionalistico diventa evidente. In base a queste, alcuni studi punteranno a vedere nei Daci il popolo sottomesso dai capitalisti Romani; quando invece prevarrà un clima di distensione, allora i Romani vengono dipinti come portatori di civilizzazione. Inoltre, si evidenzierà come alcuni studiosi si piegheranno a questa volontà manipolatrice, mentre quelli più resistenti dovranno chiudersi nei loro studi per non subire ritorsioni. Si sottolineeranno i pochi confronti con gli altri studiosi stranieri, compresi quelli appartenenti al blocco comunista, a scapito della qualità delle ricerche, nonostante operassero anche studiosi dalle grandi competenze.