Sipar, archaeological excavationand protection of the site from 2013 to 2015*

U radu se iznose rezultati triju istraživačkih kampanja (2013., 2014. i 2015.) na arheološkom lokalitetu Sipar, 4 km sjeverno do Umaga. Prve dvije godine lokalitet se raščišćavao od kamenog nasipa, a treće se godinezapočelo s revizijom istraživanja iz 1964. i 1965. godine. Od nepokretnih arheoloških struktura definiran je rimski objekt s pilonima (horreum) na južnoj strani središnjeg dijela poluotoka, kasnoantička/ranosrednjovjekovna pentagonalna kula s bedemima na istočnoj strani poluotoka te dio naselja zapadno od njih. Revizijskim istraživanjem tog dijela naselja ustanovljeno je postojanje nekoliko faza funkcioniranja naselja. Istraživanja su postavila pitanje korespondencije između utvrde i naselja.This paper presents the results of three excavations campaigns (2013, 2014 and 2015) at the Sipar archaeological site, north of Umag. During the first two years, the site was being cleared of a stone embankment, and in the third year a excavations was initiated as follow-up to the 1964 and 1965 excavations. With regard to immovable archaeological structures, we defined a Roman construction with pylons (horreum) in the south side of the central part of the peninsula, a late antique/early mediaeval pentagonal tower with ramparts in the east side of the peninsula, and a section of a settlement to their west. The revision of this part of the settlement revealed several phases of its existence. The excavations raised the question of correspondence between the fortification and the settlement

Stable population structure in Europe since the Iron Age, despite high mobility

Ancient DNA research in the past decade has revealed that European population structure changed dramatically in the prehistoric period (14,000–3000 years before present, YBP), reflecting the widespread introduction of Neolithic farmer and Bronze Age Steppe ancestries. However, little is known about how population structure changed from the historical period onward (3000 YBP - present). To address this, we collected whole genomes from 204 individuals from Europe and the Mediterranean, many of which are the first historical period genomes from their region (e.g. Armenia and France). We found that most regions show remarkable inter-individual heterogeneity. At least 7% of historical individuals carry ancestry uncommon in the region where they were sampled, some indicating cross-Mediterranean contacts. Despite this high level of mobility, overall population structure across western Eurasia is relatively stable through the historical period up to the present, mirroring geography. We show that, under standard population genetics models with local panmixia, the observed level of dispersal would lead to a collapse of population structure. Persistent population structure thus suggests a lower effective migration rate than indicated by the observed dispersal. We hypothesize that this phenomenon can be explained by extensive transient dispersal arising from drastically improved transportation networks and the Roman Empire’s mobilization of people for trade, labor, and military. This work highlights the utility of ancient DNA in elucidating finer scale human population dynamics in recent history

Stable population structure in Europe since the Iron Age, despite high mobility

International audienceAncient DNA research in the past decade has revealed that European populationstructure changed dramatically in the prehistoric period (14,000–3000 years before present, YBP),reflecting the widespread introduction of Neolithic farmer and Bronze Age Steppe ancestries.However, little is known about how population structure changed from the historical period onward(3000 YBP - present). To address this, we collected whole genomes from 204 individuals fromEurope and the Mediterranean, many of which are the first historical period genomes from theirregion (e.g. Armenia and France). We found that most regions show remarkable inter-individualheterogeneity. At least 7% of historical individuals carry ancestry uncommon in the region wherethey were sampled, some indicating cross-Mediterranean contacts. Despite this high level ofmobility, overall population structure across western Eurasia is relatively stable through the historicalperiod up to the present, mirroring geography. We show that, under standard population geneticsmodels with local panmixia, the observed level of dispersal would lead to a collapse of populationstructure. Persistent population structure thus suggests a lower effective migration rate than indi-cated by the observed dispersal. We hypothesize that this phenomenon can be explained by exten-sive transient dispersal arising from drastically improved transportation networks and the RomanEmpire’s mobilization of people for trade, labor, and military. This work highlights the utility ofancient DNA in elucidating finer scale human population dynamics in recent history