A Roman amphora containing stays of tiny sardine bones has been found in Gebenstorf, Switzerland. This the primary archaeological proof discovered proving that sardines have been consumed in Roman Switzerland.
The amphora was present in fragments inside the stays of a Roman constructing complicated on the Limmat River. Three massive buildings have been found in a rescue excavation previous to building of a residential improvement. The complicated was nearly precisely one Roman mile (2.2 km, 1.4 miles) from the legionary camp of Vindonissa. The primary massive timber and clay constructing was constructed within the 1st century A.D. on a intentionally levelled hill. The finds related to the construction point out it was a warehouse for items transported through the river destined for the legionary camp. The stays have been so well-preserved that a part of the rammed earth partitions and the wall work that adorned them survived.
The western constructing was a two-aisled corridor with porticoes (coated arcades) in entrance. The central constructing featured a cryptoporticus, a coated walkway largely sunken into the bottom, a typical function of Roman boards (marketplaces). The japanese constructing had a posh floor plan with a number of rooms, entrances, corridors, and courtyards. This distinguishes it considerably from the opposite two massive buildings. The southern ends of all three buildings lie outdoors the excavation space and should still be preserved beneath the present cantonal highway. The positioning on the Limmat was subsequently possible not solely a buying and selling middle but additionally a political and authorized hub, presumably even for a deliberate city settlement.
The constructing’s function in transport and storage of products was confirmed by the invention of hundreds of fragments of shattered amphoras from Italy, southern France and Spain. The excavation additionally discovered three stone and ten lead weights for Roman scales, a small folding ruler and writing styluses that underscore the buildings’ business and administrative use. The proof from the complicated signifies that the legions at Vindonissa constructed and operated a transshipment depot to offer their very own provides for about 50 years. The complicated was intentionally demolished to the foundations when the eleventh Legion withdrew in 101 A.D. Nothing was rebuilt over it.
The excavation resulted in Could, however researchers are nonetheless learning recovered archaeological materials. Among the many fragments of shattered amphorae, the crew discovered one full amphora. It was in fragments, however they have been nonetheless in place slightly than scattered. A greyish-white sediment was seen contained in the amphora. To complete object was recovered en bloc and transported to the cantonal archaeology restoration laboratory the place the sediment was collected and despatched to the College of Basel for evaluation.
The sediment was strained via a number of nice sieves. What remained have been tiny bones of marine animals from the liquid that had as soon as been contained within the amphora. This liquid was fish sauce, some of the standard condiments of antiquity. Historical sources point out varied names for it, reminiscent of flos liquamen, (h)allec, muria, salsamenta, and maybe the best-known, garum. These phrases denote completely different qualities of fish sauce.
The bones have been primarily stays (bones, scales, vertebrae) of Sardina pilchardus, often known as the Atlantic or European sardine. This marine fish is comparatively widespread, discovered within the Northeast Atlantic and likewise within the Mediterranean. Sardines type very massive faculties close to the coast and are nonetheless essential meals fish immediately. The stays from the amphora got here from very small specimens, lower than ten centimeters lengthy. That is the primary proof of sardine stays at a Roman-era website in Switzerland. […]
Because the amphora itself may also present clues about its place of manufacturing, an amphora specialist from the cantonal archaeology division examined the fragments. Primarily based on the standard of the clay, the amphora, and subsequently additionally the fish sauce it contained, was possible produced on the coast of the Roman province of Baetica, present-day Andalusia. Nonetheless, an origin in Gaul, within the space surrounding present-day Lyon, can’t be solely dominated out. The amphora and its contents have been in all probability manufactured and traded between roughly 25 and 50 AD – comparisons of its type counsel this.
The cantonal archaeology division has produced a documentary concerning the 14-month excavation of the Limmat River Roman constructing complicated. Click on the gear icon to pick the English language audiotrack and/or English subtitle choices.
