The "Alburnus Maior" National Research Program

           Brief history of the investigations. The Carpeni Hill [1] did not undergo systematic excavations prior to the ones which were made in 2000-2001, although there had been reports of traces of a mining settlement on this massif, a settlement which was in close relation with gold mining in the coast tunnels on Valea Rosiei (Verespatak). The authors of volume III/3 of IDR assumed that this hill may have been the location of the miners' "hamlet" known as vicus Pirustarum, mentioned in TabCerD IX, and also that there may have been a fortified point there.
           It is interesting to note that, before the discovery of the luculus from Hăbad-Brădoaia and, except for the wax-coated tablets, most of the epigraphic material (the funerary monuments and most of the votive ones) comes from the Carpeni settlement and from the Ţarina [2] necropolis.
           In the case of the former, 7 inscriptions were accidentally discovered, out of which 6 were definitely votive [3] and one probably funerary [4]. One of these - IDR III/3 - is extremely important, as it attests the existence of a k(astellum) Barudist(arum) and of a college, which probably had the social-ethnic character of a massive group of Illyrian miners - "Baridustae", who had come from the Bariduum settlement (or area) in Dalmatia and had settled in the mining region Alburnus Maior [5].
           As the area investigation assigned to investigations was located on the crest of the Carpeni Hill [6] (Fig. 1), it was decided that a major section should be drawn, as to enclose the top of the hill so that we could apprehend as much information as possible and establish in which direction the team's efforts should be concentrated during the ensuing phases of the excavations.
           Thus, in the initial phase we traced and dug a section - S1 (Fig. 1, 7) - North-West South-East oriented, 2 m wide and 78 m long, later on extended by excaating a 6 x 5 m cassette, thus reaching 81 m After excavating down to a depth of 0.6-1 m, we were able to notice the lack of archaeological traces in the first 70 m of the section. The geological soil did not reveal any trace of anterior human intervention in the above-mentioned portion, except for several atypical, very worn out and damaged ceramic fragments, scattered in the current vegetal layer. In order to accurately establish the stratigraphic situation, two soundings were made in the geological soil, at meters no. 0-3 and no. 21-24, down to 1.50-1.80 m. No change was noticed in the stratigraphy, which required that further excavations should be concentrated in the southern area where Roman traces were had been discovered. Close to the southern profile of section S1, between meters no. 80-81, under the present-day layer of humus, we uncovered a modern hearth - the trace of an incidental fire - which cannot be correlated to the local traces of Roman inhabitancy.
           In the same southern area of the section, at a depth of approx. 0.60 m, we found what seemed to be the trace left after the removal of a wooden wall (P) (Fig. 7); it was filled with a layer of earth mixed with a lot of coal and very numerous ceramic fragments, relatively many glass fragments and, sporadically, very small parts of bronze items. Next to the above-mentioned discovery, we noticed the trace left by the removal of a wooden pole of 20 x 18 cm in cross-section. Because of the soil acidity, most of the items discovered during the excavations made here are in an advanced stage of decay; therefore, a possible attempt to identify and preserve them is difficult.
           Once we established the area where the archaeological traces are concentrated, other sections were opened: S2- East-West oriented, 15 x 2 x 1.50 m, S3- North-South oriented, 29 x 2 x 1.50 m, S4- parallel to S1, 2.75 x 2 x 1.50 m; S5 - in the area between S1and S3, North-West South-East oriented, initially 7 x 2 x 1.50 m, extended to 7.8 x 5.70 m.
           The S2 section (Fig. 1) did not reveal substantial archaeological traces, therefore we also performed two soundings on this particular spot, with the dimensions 2x 2 x 1.80 m, down to a depth of 2 m; these excavations confirmed the anterior conclusions. The only item we discovered was a votive altar fragment, with two partial lines of the inscription (Fig. 35); but the item was in secondary position. In the compact layer of brown clay mixed with gray kaolin argil we only discovered a few very damaged brick fragments.
           On the eastern side of the S3section (Fig. 1, 7, 12/1,3), over a length of 0.50 m, was discovered the western end of a dwelling which occurs to be a half-sunken dwelling Loc3 (Fig. 7). Also here were observed the traces of a clogged sewer (Co), which crosses S5 and contiunes in S1.
           Over the entire area of section S4 (Fig. 7) was noticed what could be the faint trace of a half-sunken dwelling (Loc 2).
           Section S5 (Fig. 7) allowed to discover a Roman dwelling (Loc1), sized 5.10 x 2.60 m, East-West oriented; the dwelling continues into the unexplored area.
           The observations made in the excavated sections allowed us to identify two chronological levels in the stratigraphy of the area. The earlier one consists of three rudimentary dwellings, half-sunken dwellings, excavated directly into the ancient humus. The pits that enclosed these dwellings are filled with a layer of brownish soil (level 2 in the S 1 and S 3 sections profiles) that contains a large quantity of ceramic and glass fragments. Occasionally, small fragments of bronze oxide could be found. The soil acidity cause the intense degradation of the ceramic items and of the bronze fragments making it impossible for us to identify most of the discovered fragments of artifacts.
           The dwelling named Loc1, discovered in S5, although the biggest, did not yield much archaeological material. The bowls (Fig. 23, no. 49-50) discovered here are of the usual Roman pottery types that also enjoyed a wide circulation during the 2^nd and 3^rd centuries A.D.
           Considerably more ceramic material and glass were discovered in section S4, in the dwelling named Loc2. The fragments of glass platter [7] (Fig. 18, no. 14) and glass goblet [8] (Fig. 18, no. 16) that we were able to determine had a wide circulation starting with the middle of the 1^st century A.D. until the middle of the 3^rd century A.D. The ceramic material found here did not allow a more rigorous chronological determination of their origin.
           In the eastern part of section S3 we discovered the end of another dwelling, named Loc3. Here the 2^nd level also corresponds to the demolition of the dwelling. The duct of the sewer Co crossed a small part to the north of the dwelling. The clogging fill of this canal slightly intersects the northern side of the Loc3dwelling and is covered by the kaolin argil and yellow clay layer, 1. The latter is a natural accumulation layer in which not many material traces were discovered; it covers the 2^nd culture layer in all the excavated surfaces. The Co canal was functional after the demolition of Loc3 and it became clogged in time. Clogging fill of sewer Co consists of a whitish-mustard kaolin argil, very common in the geologic layer of the area.
           The material discovered in Loc3 includes a silver mirror fragment (Fig. 17, no. 1), a silver spatula (Fig. 17, no. 2) used to extract ointments from unguetaria, two bronze fibulae (Fig. 17, no. 3, 4) and a bronze coin (Fig. 34/1a-b).
           From the two fibulae, the one with a more strong shape (Fig. 17, no. 3) can be chronologically dated, based on analogies, to the 2^nd c. A.D. [9], while the on with the pin twisted underneath (Fig. 17, no. 4) - probably to the 3^rd c. A.D. [10]. The bronze coin can be dated back to the time of Emperor Trajan and was produced in Tabai, in the Caria province of Asia Minor. The coin proves the origin of some of those who settled in Alburnus Maior, in the Carpeni Hill zone. The two elements: the heavily profiled fibula and the coin, which could date the destruction of the dwellings to the middle of the 2^nd century A.D., are denied by the existence, in the same context, of the fibula with the pin twisted underneath, which would not circulate before the 3^rd century A.D. As the latter item is singular among the artifacts discovered in the Carpeni Hill area, the dating of the Loc3and implicitly Loc1 and Loc2dwellingsdisappearance must be doubted and stated with maximum prudence. The Co sewer does not have any other chronological reference point except for the fact that it was functional and in use after the dwellings had been demolished.
           In order to cover as large an area as possible, in July we also made some archaeological investigations south of the sections mentioned above, somewhere close to the crest of the Carpeni hill, on the property of the same Iustin Balea.
           For this purpose, five sections and four cassettes were opened, as it follows (Fig. 1):
           S6 - length: 20 m; width: 2.5 m; S7 - length: 22 m; width: 3 m; S8 - length: 15.50 m; width: 2.5 m; S9 - length: 7.50 m; width: 2 m; S10 - length: 13.50 m; width: 2 m.
           To the right side of 6 four cassettes were opened: C1 - 4.50 x 3 m; C2 - 2.80 x 3 m; C3 - 2 x 3 m; C4 - 4.20 x 2.80 m. In the above mentioned section, right after removing the vegetal layer, which has a maximum thickness of 0.20 m, at meter 10 we found the end of a building C1, which continued up to meter 14.40. The eastern side of this structure, with a north-south orientation, runs into the northern profile at meter 10.75 - therefore it is oblique as to S6 - and continues into C2 (Fig. 10). The structure corner was also identified in section S6, and the southern side, with an East-West orientation, was discovered in section S8. Inside this funerary enclosure two incineration graves were discovered, which we identified as M2 and M3.
           Grave no. 1 (M1) (Fig. 10) is surrounded by a stone ring, starting 6 m away from the eastern end of the section, with an interior diameter of approximately 2.5 m and an exterior one of 3.4 m. The ring extends into the northern profile of the section, therefore, in order to observe the whole structure, we opened the cassette named C2. To the north, appended to the ring, there is a rectangular contour traced in stones, with the dimensions of 1.40 x 0.40 m on the inside. The stone ring is composed of two rows with a maximum width of 0.35 m; the stones, which are actually quarry stones, are bound in soil. Inside this ring, at a depth of 0.40 m, there is the pit of a incineration grave, with a east-west orientation. The grave's pit has its eastern side 6.7 m away from the eastern profile and the northern side 0.2 m away from the northern profile of the section. The grave's dimensions are: 0.70 m (north-south) x 1.45 m (east-west). Viewed from the profile, the pit has an alveolate shape, reaching a maximum depth of 0.70 m; it is filled with earth and burned wood and the pit's walls are red on very small areas. Inside the ring, beside the grave, no burn marks could be discovered. The cinerary remains were very small bone fragments. The archaeological material that was discovered is very poorly preserved, due to the humidity. We discovered atypical ceramic fragments, a lamp fragment (Fig. 30, no. 84) and a pot (Fig. 30, no. 83). At the bottom of the pit we could see water coming up, as the phreatic water is very high.
           Grave no. 2 (M2) (Fig. 10). The western end of the ring around this grave is 10.20 m away from the eastern profile of the section and has a maximum thickness of 0.30 m. This stone ring of the grave is located under the southeastern corner of the C1 building, which partially destroys the eastern end of the stone ring. The eastern end of the grave pit is tangent to the eastern side of the precincts. The grave orientation is East-West and the dimensions are 0.65 m (North-South) x 1.20 m (East-West). The pit of grave M2 occurs at a depth of 0.60 m from the present level of the ground and continues down to 0.80 m. This pit was filled with earth and burnt wood coal, as well. The grave inventory consists of three beads (Fig. 31, no. 85), a very poorly preserved sestertium and two bottoms of pottery (Fig. 31, no. 86-87).
           Grave no. 3 (M3) (fig. 10). This grave ring occured 12.5 m away from the eastern end of the 6 section, on the northern profile. Only the southern end of the ring around the M3 grave can be found in S VI; the grave extends into the C3 cassette, has an internal diameter of approximately 2 m and is composed of two rows with a maximum thickness of 0.60 m and a height of 0.40 m. The grave has a South-East North-West orientation. The eastern side of the grave pit is situated 13.10 m away from the eastern end of S6 and the pit is 0.60 m wide. The northern side is 1.50 m long; the southeastern end of the pit is 2.5 m away from the northern profile of S6, its northwestern end is 2.10 m away from the same profile. The pit occurs at a depth of 0.60 m, has a maximum depth of 0.15 m and is alveolate in profile. The grave's filling consists of black soil and coal and its edges have red spots. The earth inside the ring, but outside the proper pit, does not show burn marks. The grave's inventory consists of a lacrimarium (Fig. 32, nr. 89), a plate fragment, (Fig. 31, nr. 88) and a few atypical ceramic and glass fragments.
           Grave no. 4 (M4) (Fig. 10) has no stone ring. Its pit has an east-west orientation; its width is 1.10 m on the North-South axis and 0.60 m on the East-West axis. The grave pit occurs at a depth of 0.60 m, after which, 0.80 m from the southern side it narrows down to a width of 0.30 m. The pit reaches a depth of 0.95 m and has an alveolate shape. The pit of M4 was filled with soil that contained a rather large quantity of coal. 1.50 m away from the eastern profile of S6 was sectioned the end of the grave and was reached the depth of 1.10 m, in order to observe the first Roman level of habitation (Fig. 11/1). This first level of inhabitancy begins at -0.75 m and has a maximum thickness of 0.30 m. It consists of black soil with brick pigments and several atypical ceramic fragments. Because of the underground water, we could only partially excavate this layer, therefore we were not able to clear the grave pit.
           Grave no. 5 (M5) (Fig. 10) was discovered in S8 and S9. This too is an incineration grave, with a partly preserved stone ring. The eastern end of the ring is 0.60 m away and the western end is 3.60 m away from the eastern profile of S8 and S9. As the grave was located under the profile, it was eliminated. The grave pit occured at the depth of 0.60 m and the alveolate bottom of the pit is 0.90 m from the current level of the ground. The pit of M5 contains soil and burnt coal and the soil inside the ring does not bear any burn marks. The inventory of this grave consists of a bowl (Fig. 32, no. 90) the bottom of a pot (Fig. 32, no. 92), a jug (Fig. 32, no. 93) and a rim of a glass vessel (Fig. 32, no. 91).
           Grave no. 6 (M6) (fig. 10) is North-South oriented. The pit is located 6.5 m away from the eastern end of S8 and S9. Its eastern side is 1.40 m long, its north side is located 1.50 m away from the northern profile of S8 and is 0.60 m wide. The grave pit occurs at a depth of 0.40 m and continues down to 0.60 m, with an alveolate shape in profile. The filling consists of soil and burnt coal and no burn marks were found around the pit. The funerary inventory consists of two coins: a billon and an Antoninian (?), a turibulum (Fig. 29, nr. 81), a bottom of a glass vessel (Fig. 29, no. 82) and three iron pieces (Fig. 33, no. 94-96).
           The southern side of the C1 structure also extends into S8; the western end of the remaining wall is 14 m away from the eastern profile of S8. The maximum height of the remaining wall is 0.80 m. At the western end and at the southern side of S6, S8 and S9 the slope of the ground is very steep.
           Besides the above-mentioned sections and cassettes, we also opened several others, in which no levels of Roman, medieval or modern inhabitancies were discovered. These were: S11 - 60 x 1.50 m and S12 - 20 x 2 m.