Eboracum

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Remains of the Roman wall of the legionary camp

Eboracum , later elevated to Colonia Eboracensium , was a Roman city in the province of Britain , on the site of present-day York . Roman emperors resided in the city several times, who used the city as a starting point for various campaigns.

history

The beginnings of the city are in the dark, but there seems to have been no Celtic predecessor settlement. A first legionary camp was built in 71 AD on the site of the later city, in which the Legio VIIII Hispana was housed until around 120 . This came after the brigands ' territory in which the city was located was subdued. Around 108 the camp was provided with stone walls. The Legio VI Victrix had been stationed here since 120 .

In addition to the military camp, a settlement developed early on that quickly reached urban proportions and was the main town of the brigands' civitas . Around 197 Britain was divided into two provinces, with Eboracum becoming the capital of Britannia inferior . During this time, Emperor Septimius Severus stayed in the city, who led campaigns against the Picts and other northern invaders from here . According to literary sources, the place is said to have even had an imperial palace at this time, but it has not yet been archaeologically verifiable with certainty. In the year 211 the emperor died in the city. Shortly thereafter, Eboracum was apparently raised to colony status and given the full name Colonia Eboracensium , although it does not appear with that status until an inscription dated 237.

At the end of the third century the British provinces were subdivided again. The city was now the capital of the province of Britannia secunda . During this time, Emperor Constantius I also resided in the city and led campaigns against the Picts and Scots from there . He died in Eboracum in 306. His son Constantine the Great was proclaimed emperor there. In the early 4th century the Legio VI Victrix undertook major renovations at their main camp, Eburacum . Fortifications and towers were strengthened and other buildings such as the Principia were repaired. The city retained its importance throughout the fourth century, but probably belonged to the Brigantian kingdom of Ebrauc , which the Anglo-Saxons conquered, after the Romans withdrew in the fifth century . There are signs of settlement continuity, but with new residents.

archeology

The city consisted of several parts. To the north was the legionary camp, the walls and extent of which are well known. To the southwest of it joined the civil town, which lay on both sides of the river Ouse . The civil town had its own city wall.

Although there have been numerous excavations in the urban area, it is difficult to get an idea of ​​the ancient city. The location of most of the public buildings that can be expected for the city is as yet unknown. There were monumental thermal baths in the south of the city . There is a thought that they were part of an imperial palace. The remains of a basilica could be excavated, which may have been part of a forum. An amphitheater is documented by texts. Numerous temples or sanctuaries can be suspected on the basis of consecration stones . None of them have yet been located.

Outside the city walls, there were large necropolises, rich in inscribed tombstones. About 100 years ago, archaeologists also discovered the famous grave of the lady with the ivory bracelet here . It contained lavish grave goods, so that the lady must have belonged to the Roman upper class around 1600 years ago. Hella Eckhardt from the University of Reading determined in 2009 based on the shape of the skull and the oxygen and strontium isotopes in the teeth that she came from North Africa. The grave goods included a bracelet from Gagat and an ivory bracelet , which was very rare in Britain. A leg fitting of a wooden box contained an inscription that is interpreted as Christian today and therefore testifies to the still young religion in the Roman Empire of the 4th century. A blue glass perfume bottle and a glass mirror were also located in the exposed stone sarcophagus .

Others

The city ​​of New York describes itself in its seal based on the ancient name of York as Civitas Novum Eboracum , on the seal it says literally: "SIGILLUM CIVITATIS NOVI EBORACI" (= seal of the city of New York). The York-based formation for baroque music Ensemble Eboracum Baroque uses the name Eboracum.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A. Simon Esmonde-Cleary: The Ending of Roman Britain , Routledge, 1991, ISBN 978-0-415-23898-4 , pp. 45-46.
  2. ↑ See Alex Woolfe: "Romancing the Celts: Segmentary societies and the geography of Romanization in the north-west provinces", in: Ray Laurence and Joanne Berry (eds.): Cultural Identity in the Roman Empire. Routledge, Oxford 1998, ISBN 0-203-02266-1 , p. 207; after the Romans leave, the Roman Eburacum becomes the Celtic Ebrauc , see Celtic Cair Ebrauc in Nennius , Historia Brittonum 66
  3. ^ Nicole Mai: The Lady of Eboracum ?? - a rich African woman on Spektrum.de news from March 5, 2010
  4. ↑ The Lady of Eboracum. In: Epoc. Heidelberg 2010,3, 9th ISSN  1865-5718
  5. ↑ http://eboracumbaroque.co.uk/about/

literature

  • John Wacher: The Towns of Roman Britain. Routledge, London / New York 1997, pp. 302-323. ISBN 0-415-17041-9

Web links

Commons : Eboracum  - collection of images, videos and audio files
Wiktionary: Eboracum  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Coordinates: 53 ° 57 ′ 42 "  N , 1 ° 4 ′ 50"  W ,