Pons Augusti

Pons Augusti
Alternative name	Voislova Castle
limes	Dacian Limes
section	A / IV / NN
size	A) unknown, larger than B) ; B) 36 m × 47 m = 0.17 ha
Construction	A) Wood and earth warehouse ; B) Stone fort
State of preservation	Ground monument
place	Voislova , Zăvoi municipality
Geographical location	45 ° 31 '39 " N , 22 ° 27' 22" E Coordinates: 45 ° 31 '39 " N , 22 ° 27' 22" E
height	323 m
Previous	Zăvoi Castle ; (west, A / IV / 18)
Subsequently	Sarmizegetusa Fort ; (east, A / IV / 18a)

Pons Augusti (German: Bridge of Augustus; also: Kastell Voislova ) is a former Roman auxiliary troop camp on the territory of the village of Voislova in the Romanian region of Banat, which belongs to the municipality of Zăvoi .

location

Pons Augusti is already listed on the Tabula Peutingeriana . In ancient times the fort was located on the so-called Kaiserstraße from Tibiscum to Colonia Ulpia Traiana Augusta Dacica Sarmizegetusa and, together with the Zăvoi fort, probably served to monitor this important connection. At Voislova a pass connection branched off to the north into the mountains. In today's settlement the ground monument is on the western edge of the village.

Archaeological findings and finds

The area in which the fort and its auxiliary vicus are located has been known as a Roman site since the 19th century, but has so far only been insufficiently archaeologically investigated. Systematic area excavations did not take place at all. Accordingly, little is known about this ensemble. A rectangular, 35 m by 46 m (= 0.17 ha) stone fort made of limestone and underneath the traces of a larger wood-earth store was identified. The few inscriptions were of a civil, not a military, character, but an inscription find stood out, a votive altar made of marble, which had been erected by the legate in the rank of praetor , the governor Caius Iulius Gallus, between 197 and 211 and on which the Soldier god Mars is invoked:

Marti / [pr] o salut [e] [imperator (um) [Severi] [et Ant] onini [f (ilii) conserv (atori)] [Aug] usto [rum] / [do] mino [rum] [nos] tro [rum] [C (aius) I (ulius)] Gallus le [g (atus)] [eor] um pr (o) pr (aetore) [cu] m sui [s] [v (otum) s (olvit) l (ibens) m (erito)]

Translation : "To Mars for the salvation of the Emperor Severus, son of Antoninus, our preserving Lord Augustus, Caius Iulius Gallus with his family has fulfilled his vows gladly and for a fee."

The establishment of a consecration stone by the governor speaks for a certain, at least temporary, importance of the place. The explicit invocation of Mars , the god of war , also speaks for a military presence in Voislova. In Ad aquas Herculi sacras ( Baile Herculane / Hercules bath) a similar consecration stone of the same governor has been found on which Hercules is invoked.

Monument protection

The entire archaeological site and are in particular the castle according to the adopted in 2001 Law no. 422/2001 as historical monuments under protection and are using the LMI code CS-ISB 10895 in the national list of historic monuments ( Lista Monumentelor istorice ) entered . Responsible are the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage (Ministerul Culturii și Patrimoniului Național) , in particular the General Directorate for National Cultural Heritage, the Department of Fine Arts, the National Commission for Historical Monuments and other institutions subordinate to the Ministry. Unauthorized excavations and the export of ancient objects are prohibited in Romania.

literature

Petru Oprut: Istoria locală a Voislovei. Perioada pre-romană / dacică șicea romană. In: Ders .: Voislova . Ed. Marineasa, Timișoara 2008, pp. 46–51, on banaterra.eu (Romanian) accessed on January 18, 2020.

Web links

Castrul roman de la Voislova on the website Repertoriul Arheologic Național (RAN) des Ministerul Culturii (Romanian), accessed on January 18, 2020.

Individual evidence

^ Route / section / fort number according to Nicolae Gudea : The Dacian Limes. Materials on its story. In: Yearbook of the Römisch Germanisches Zentralmuseum Mainz. 44, 2, 1997, ( digitized version ).
↑ Tab. Peut. VI A 5
↑ ^a ^b ^c Petru Oprut: Istoria locală a Voislovei. Perioada pre-romană / dacică șicea romană. In: Ders .: Voislova . Ed. Marineasa, Timișoara 2008, pp. 46–51, on banaterra.eu (Romanian) accessed on January 18, 2020.
↑ According to Clauss / Slaby
↑ IDR-03-01, 00271a
↑ LMI CS-IsB-10895
↑ List of historical monuments on the website of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage

[1] Route / section / fort number according to Nicolae Gudea : The Dacian Limes. Materials on its story. In: Yearbook of the Römisch Germanisches Zentralmuseum Mainz. 44, 2, 1997, ( digitized version ).

[2] Tab. Peut. VI A 5

[Oprut-3] Petru Oprut: Istoria locală a Voislovei. Perioada pre-romană / dacică șicea romană. In: Ders .: Voislova . Ed. Marineasa, Timișoara 2008, pp. 46–51, on banaterra.eu (Romanian) accessed on January 18, 2020.

[4] According to Clauss / Slaby

[5] IDR-03-01, 00271a

[6] LMI CS-IsB-10895

[7] List of historical monuments on the website of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage