OBSERVAŢII ASUPRA INCINTEI VESTICE A CASTRULUI ROMAN DE LA APULUM ŞI CÂTEVA CONSTATĂRI ISTORICE
OBSERVATION ON THE WESTERN PRECINCTS OF THE ROMAN CAMP AT APULUM AND HISTORICAL REMARKS

Summary/Abstract: The archeologic research occasioned by the restoration of a historical monument building, for the installation of a religious art museum including patrimonial books, brought to light interesting data upon the ruins in the west-northern side of the Roman camp from Apulum and inside the former ancient fortification, during the post Roman period until the 19th century. It was already known that the building functioned as a Military Hospital during the Habsburg domination, but our research prove that the building is older, belonging to the period of the Transylvanian Principality. We discovered stages of the building dated as belonging to the 16th - 17th centuries and improvements and extensions dating from the 18th - 19th centuries. Thus, it was identified a post Roman wall maintained as element of construction in the present building, on a length of 14.9 m, partially in elevation, on eight - nine layers, up to 3.8 m height on the contemporary stepping level. After the ruin of the camp wall to a late date, estimated between the end of the Roman domination and the beginning of the post Roman period, a recovery of the wall was performed on the section we researched in the western precincts. There are several elements favouring our theory: the reuse of profiled blocks and their placement on pinkish mortar digs with a thickness of 5-7 cm; the reuse of an interior face of a block (with semi-circular end), initially used for the crest of the camp in the classical period; the reuse of roman stone monuments at the level of the first layer in elevation; the use of carved blocks, next to the robbed fragment from the monument, on the first layer level; the use of pinkish (hydraulic) mortar at the base and between the blocks; the use of a consistent bed of ballast under the first layer of the elevation, at the level of section 68, where we recovered only post Roman ceramic fragments from the 4th century; the modification of the elevation route reported to the elevation of the old camp. In our opinion, the massive reconstruction of the camp walls on the side we directly researched (a small part from the western precincts) and in the south side proves the existence of a powerful centre controlling minimum the valley of the middle Mureş River. It was most probable ruled by the successors of the veterans established in the urban centre of Apulum and possessors of technical know-how for the reconstruction of the camp. Such a centre of political power maintained its connection with the Roman Empire during the 4th century, a conclusion proved by the numerous discovered artefacts.

• Details
• Contents