Barriers, Barracks, and Beyond: Remarks on Some Current Roman Military           Studies

Fiema, Zbigniew T.; Waateringe, W. Groenman-van; Beek, B.L. van; Willems, W.J.H.; Wynia, S.L.; Gronke, Eveline; Friesinger, Herwig; Krinzinger, Fritz; Napoli, J.

doi:10.2307/506751

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“…In this study, we focus on the archaeological site of Madâ'in Sâlih (ancient Hegra), which is located 20 km north-east of the city of al-Ula in Saudi Arabia and covers approximately 3 km 2 (Nehmé, 2021). A few years after the Nabataean kingdom was annexed by the Romans, in AD 106, a fort was built in the southern part of Hegra as a base for the military garrison responsible for protecting Roman interests in that part of the eastern frontier (Fiema, 2018). Ongoing Saudi-French excavations have revealed that the Roman fort was probably militarily abandoned around the end of the third century or the beginning of the fourth century, and completely abandoned at the beginning of the fifth century.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ongoing Saudi-French excavations have revealed that the Roman fort was probably militarily abandoned around the end of the third century or the beginning of the fourth century, and completely abandoned at the beginning of the fifth century. There is no evidence of more recent occupation, so no significant human activity has occurred at the site for at least 1500 years (Fiema, 2018). In the middle of the 20th century, a metal fence was installed around the ancient site of Hegra to protect it from intrusion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Revealing human impact on natural ecosystems through soil bacterial DNA sampled from an archaeological site

Boivin,

Bourceret,

Maurice

et al. 2023

Environmental Microbiology

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Human activities have affected the surrounding natural ecosystems, including belowground microorganisms, for millennia. Their short‐ and medium‐term effects on the diversity and the composition of soil microbial communities are well‐documented, but their lasting effects remain unknown. When unoccupied for centuries, archaeological sites are appropriate for studying the long‐term effects of past human occupancy on natural ecosystems, including the soil compartment. In this work, the soil chemical and bacterial compositions were compared between the Roman fort of Hegra (Saudi Arabia) abandoned for 1500 years, and a preserved area located at 120 m of the southern wall of the Roman fort where no human occupancy was detected. We show that the four centuries of human occupancy have deeply and lastingly modified both the soil chemical and bacterial compositions inside the Roman fort. We also highlight different bacterial putative functions between the two areas, notably associated with human occupancy. Finally, this work shows that the use of soils from archaeological sites causes little disruption and can bring relevant information, at a large scale, during the initial surveys of archaeological sites.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%