VIRGINIA L. CAMPBELL, THE TOMBS OF POMPEII. ORGANIZATION, SPACE, AND SOCIETY

Virginia L. Campbell, The Tombs of Pompeii. Organization, Space, and Society, Routledge Studies in Ancient History 7, Routledge Publishing House, 2015. 372 pp. ISBN 978-1-138-80919-

From Goths to Huns: Shifting identities in the Lower Danube area during the 5th century AD

Identity is a complex and contextual concept, typical to human behaviour and throughout the life course of an individual, it is negotiated, acquired, inherited or even crafted employing different techniques of self-representation. Identity is inherent to different relations of power and social inequality, and therefore one should identify and study the potential material remains and/or spatial patterns accounting for such practices. Being a multifaceted concept, social identity changes by means of cultural encounters as well as during periods of great turmoil, social discontinuity or reorganization as was the case with the Lower Danube area during the 5th century AD.By reading the archaeological discoveries belonging to this chronological framework in this interpretative key, we intend to tackle the mortuary contexts discovered in this area. We intend to use two-way analysis combining the anthropological and archaeological data in order to set the ground for a debate concerning the multiple facets (biological, cultural, social, economic, ethnic etc.) of this self-representation construct referred to as “identity”.After thorough scrutiny of the archaeological record, one should focus upon the complicated relations between the various communities inhabiting this area, especially since both the archaeological data and the ancient historical sources account for the existence of different groups in the Lower Danube area. Of great importance would be to understand both the impact as well as the nature of the relations between the newly arrived Huns and these diverse communities that they encountered upon their arrival.In the Romanian scholarly milieu was clearly exaggerated, the apocalyptic impact that the Huns have had upon this region. A reality that gave us a good reason for readdressing the above-mentioned topics based on the hypothesis about the of an archaeological culture must be related to an exact date in the time given by various military conflicts recorded in the ancient sources

Geophysical Investigations within the Latus Dextrum of Porolissum Fort, Northwestern Romania—The Layout of a Roman Edifice

This paper summarizes the results of a recent geophysical investigation carried out at Porolissum, which is considered to be one of the most significant Roman sites in Romania. The geophysical survey was carried out within the latus dextrum of the fort, which is the same location that had been the subject of earlier geophysical surveys as well as older archaeological excavations (1970s) that had uncovered a multiroom building. A cesium vapor total field magnetometer and a multi-electrode resistivity meter for a dense Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) survey were used. Eighty parallel ERT profiles in combination with the emerging total field magnetic data and an antecedent magnetic survey allowed us to complete a more precise interpretation regarding the building that once existed on the left side of Porolissum’s Principia (the commander’s house). In contrast to the magnetic survey, which only reveals a part of the building’s architecture, the ERT survey provides a comprehensive view of the structure’s layout. More than 20 rooms could be positively identified, and the existence of further rooms might be deduced from the data. The ERT scan revealed the existence of the building’s northern external wall as well, which is not reflected on the magnetic map. Because some parts of the building are not visible on the magnetic map, we can assume that the building was constructed with at least two types of rocks (magmatic and sedimentary). In addition to the archaeological interpretation of the geophysical anomalies, a number of discussions concerning the connection between our survey and the geology of the area were held. The complementarity of the magnetic and resistivity results prompted us to conceive a preliminary 3D reconstruction of the building. Even if the building function is unknown in the absence of reliable archaeological data, it could have been a storage building, a second praetorium, a valetudinarium (hospital), or an armamentarium (weapons storage building). The illustrative reconstruction was completed taking into consideration that the building was a Roman military hospital, which, based on the available data, may be considered a credible assumption

Recent Research at the Basilica Extra Muros in Histria at 100 Years Since the Initiation of Archaeological Research on the Site

The Basilica extra muros is among the first monuments in Histria that started to be excavated right after Vasile Pârvan discovered the site in 1914. The uncovering of the only Early Christian basilica outside the precinct walls of Histria continued during several campaigns (1917 – under the leadership of the the German architect J. Jacobs ; 1955– 1956 – Em. Popescu ; 1961– 1964 – N. Hamparţumian), leading to the almost entire uncovering of the monument and the identification of two necropolises in the area – one earlier than the basilica (4th– 5th century AD) and the other contemporary to it (end of the 5th century – first half of the 7th century AD). At the initiative of Alexandru Suceveanu, the research of the Basilica extra muros was resumed again in 2001 by a team initially consisting of Viorica Rusu-Bolindeţ (MNIT), Karl von de Lohe (“ Ludwig Maximilian” University in München – the 2001 campaign), Alexandru Bădescu (MNIR), and since 2008 Vlad-Andrei Lăzărescu (IAIAC). The following goals have been reached during the five campaigns (2001, 2006, 2008– 2010, 2013) : the creation of an up-to-date survey of the basilica (2001) and archaeological research of both the annex on the north-eastern side (2006) and the area south of the three annex buildings of the Christian monument (2008– 2010, 2013). The present article aims at providing a synthesis overview of the results of the archaeological research performed during the previously mentioned campaigns. On the basis of the stratigraphy and the archaeological material we shall present both the new data obtained, aimed at contributing to a more detailed chronology, building and functioning stages of the Basilica extra muros, and at providing new information on the development of the extra muros area in Histria. Thus, it has been noted that the Late Roman habitation (end of the 5th century – first half of the 7th century AD) was present both north and south of the Basilica extra muros, as building elements discovered in the area south of the three annex buildings of the Christian monument, to the south, confirmed the observations we were able to make during previous research north of the basilica (2001– 2012). We have also obtained new data on the necropolises in that area – 23 more inhumation tombs were discovered on the southern side of the basilica (out of which 10 have been excavated so far), mainly belonging to a necropolis in use before the construction of the basilica (4th– 5th century AD), but also some were part of the necropolis that was contemporary to the building (end of the 5th century – first half of the 7th century AD). The presentation of these tombs, together with their inventory, typology and chronological setting, as well as the anthropologic analysis1 of the skeletons are a significant part of the results obtained by the team excavating the Basilica extra muros sector during the last years. We hope that the continuation of the archaeological research in that area, combined with those performed in the Histria South sector by colleague Mircea Dabîca (IAB), will bring more information on the possible boundaries between the habitation area and the necropolises and on the location of the harbor of the Greek-Roman city of Histria.Basilica extra muros este unul dintre primele monumente de la Histria a cărui cercetare a început odată cu descoperirea sitului de către Vasile Pârvan în anul 1914.Rusu-Bolindeţ Viorica, Bădescu Alexandru, Lăzărescu Vlad-Andrei, Dima Mihai, Radu Claudia, Szeredai Norbert, Kelemen Beatrice. Recent Research at the Basilica Extra Muros in Histria at 100 Years Since the Initiation of Archaeological Research on the Site. In: Materiale şi cercetãri arheologice (Serie nouã), N°10 2014. pp. 199-219