Excavations in Balaklava (Seastopol, Ukraine) – season 2011. Discovery of fortifications of a roman fort

Abstrakt

Archaeological examinations of the joint Polish- -Ukrainian expedition in Sevastopol havealready lasted for 15 years. In theircourse, several important discoveries have been made. our knowledge on the presence of Roman troops in Crimea is richer with regard to several facts concerning religious and family life of soldiers (SARNoWSKI, SAvELâ 2000). It was possible to discover basic points which made up the security system created by the Romans along the borders of Chersonesos Taurica (SARNoWSKI, SAvELâ, KARASIEWICz-SzCzyPIoRSKI 2003; 2007). Since 2009, excavations at the Roman fort in Balaklava-Kadykovka have been carried out. The fort has not been hitherto examined in a systematic manner (KARASIEWICz-SzCzyPIoRSKI, SAvELâ 2011). Balaklava is part of the Sevastopol urban agglomeration. Kadykovka, onceasmall village, is now the northern quarter of present- -day Balaklava. The research is financed by a grant from the Polish Ministry of Science and higher Education. Radosław Karasiewicz-Szczypiorski is the grant director and the Polish head of the expedition. oleg â. Savelâ, deputy director of the “Tauric Chersonesos” National Preserve, represents the Ukrainian party. Workscarried out in thelast two seasons haveconfirmed that in the trench near the municipal market place we have to do with fragments of buildings that are very similar to the temple of Jupiter dolichenus, discovered in the neighbourhood (SARNoWSKI, SAvELâ 2000). The dating of these two buildings and a division of survived remains into two building phasesareconvergent. It was possible to find out that the exposed architectural remains were fragments of interior buildings of the fort. With a great degree of probability itcan besaid that these were barracks. The main task in the season 2011 (1.08–25.08) was to find out what was situated in the nearest vicinity of the discovered building. Already in the preceding year a trial trench on the south reached the border of the present-day market place. Thanks to this, it was possible to determine that a portico went along the Roman barracks on that side (Fig. 1:3). however, it was not possible to determine whether another building was situated farther off, or fortifications went behind a putative street. In 2011 the trial trench was extended to the north and west, thus almost reaching a rivulet which flows in the neighbourhood. At that time, in spite of a considerable destruction of layers by Modern period buildings, it was possible to identify the edge of the fort.