10-26-2011, 10:07 PM
Translation of the Pree Release of October 25th, 2010.
Part 1
(As to Part 2: Folks, frankly -- I don't know when I got time to do this :roll: )
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part 1:
Roman Military Camp Discovered Alongsides River Lippe.
LWL-Movie-Documentary on first excavations.
PIC1
The finds are reflecting everyday-life of roman legionaries: from pay, pottery, fibula,
ointment-phials to animals bones. The finds are dated to augustean times,
PIC2
General plan.( Rem.: of early roman camps related to the “Lippe camps”)
PIC3
Well over 100 years ago (Rem.: actually ca. 120 years ago!) this roman military helmet
From the first half of 1st century AD was recovered from river Lippe – “on level” with the
Newly discovered military camp.
PIC4
Aerial photograph of Olfen
PIC5
Final proof to the archeologists that they would be dealing with a find of a roman military camp : A trench nearly 5 metres deep and 2 metres wide, protecting the camp from attacks.
A constructional feature absolutely characteristical for roman military camp.
(Rem.: Ahhhhhh ….yes ?!)
PIC6
One of the first indications for the roman camp at Olfen: This fibula for roman legionaries
Dating to the first century AD, surfaced at the first prospectionary cut in 2010.
PIC7
A copper-coins charactersistical small coinage of the roman legionaries. Indicating the first
Roman military campaign in Westphalia between 11 BC and 9AD.
Fronstside: Imperator Augustus with his son-in-law Agrippa.
PIC8
(Flipside ?!) Depicted is a crocodile chained to a palmtree – an allegory of the subjection
of Egypt by Augustus. Struck in Nimes in southern France. (Rem.: That would be called
a “Nemausus as”, then, --right ?!)
PIC9
A bronce decoration of a roman legionaries’ helmet from the first century AD, which the
Researchers found in a waste-deposit dugout.
PIC 10
The hitherto “oldest-dating” find at Olfen. A late-republican silvercoin from about 90BC.
Frontside: god Apollo.
PIC11
Flipside: A Quadriga. (= Horses team-of-four)
PIC12
A fragment of typical roman table-pottery, so-called Terra Sigillata from Italy bearing the manufacturing-stamp of a potter from (todays) Tuscany. Right aside: Fragments of an
ointment-phiole for perfume oil.
PIC13:
Model of the Anreppen camp. Comparable to Olfen by its location by the river Lippe
and its wood-and-earth rampart. A similar covering with internal buildings is to be presumed.
PIC14:
A repetition of that to pic12
The pictures shown are available for download at the press-forum of the districtionary community. ( Rem.: >> LWL)
PRESS INFOS/Culture
Release from October 25th, 2011
ROMAN MILITARY CAMP DISCOVERED ON RIVER LIPPE
LWL-Movie documenting the first excavations.
OLFEN/MÜNSTER(LWL)
Archeologists of the districtionary community Westphalen-Lippe (LWL) discovered a
roman military camp over-2000-year-old and about 5 hectares large near Olfen/ Coesfeld county in the Münsterland. (Rem.: that is the area around Münster/Westfalen)
From 11 to 7 AD this camp enabled the romans to control a Lippe ford, --- one of the
most essential logistic “landmarks” for the roman conquerors.
The archeologist found pottery, coins and fibulae, identifying traces of a trench with a wooden rampart around the camp, which would grant protection for about 1000 legionaries on an area about 7 football-grounds large . (Rem.: for Americans : this is soccer-playground size).
Last time a steady “wintertight” roman encampment like this was found was at Anreppen
On the river Lippe in 1968.
“It’s a sensational find for the research on Romans in Westphalia” says Dr. Wolfgang Kirsch,
director of the LWL. “Archeologists have been searching for this roman camp for 100 years, -- it’s the ( a ) missing link in the chain of the roman military camps along the Lippe.”
Prof. Dr. Michael Rind, LWLs chief archeologist: “Olfen was of prime strategical significance
for Drusus’ campaigns in Germania.”
A paper-chase for decades
The chase for a camp at Olfen resembles a paper-chase going on for decades, initially starting
By the end of the 19th century (AD) a roman military helmet of bronce had been found in river Lippe near Olfen, which today is on exhibition at the LWL Roman Museum at Haltern.
This got the attention of the scholars of antiquity , because they were already looking for roman camps along river Lippe then.
In 2001 voluntary members of LWL-Archeology on a searching-spree discovered roman pottery fragments on a field near Olfen and “triggered” a “bundle of actions” by thearcheologists of the LWL. Aerial prospctions by member of the Ruhr University at Bochum
(Rem.: Dr. Baoquan Song, that is) took photographs of the landscapes from some 100 metres over ground to gain evidence for subterraneous building-structures through (visible) changes on the ground.
A prospectional trench of 13 metres length and 2,5 metres width was laid-out, then.
The researchers (Anm.: also) utilized so-called “magnetic prospection” looking for disturbances of the magnetic field, which could be pointing at manipulations to the ground.
Explorators (Rem.: with electronic sensing devices) under commission of the archeologists of the LWL, and working in conjunction with them, were scanning the ground for metal finds.
What started as a vague suspicion, changed to certainty in the course of only a few weeks:
It was a roman military camp, indeed. The archeologists could prove the course of a Fossa
Fastigata encircling the camp as well as the foundations traces of a wood-and-earth rampart.
Single finds of pottery, over 100 coins and a number of fibula allow dating the camp very precisely into Augustean times. The camp extends to about 230 metres versus 250 metres.
Compared to the other ronam camps along river Lippe it’s a small camp with steady structures.
Supply camp and base camp
The size of the camp, the structure of the earth-and-wood rampart and the location near the river Lippe led the researchers to believe that it was intended as a supply camp, an installment
for holding supplies that also controlled a pass over the river Lippe.
The camp at Olfen could have served as “intermediate” between the military camps of
(Lünen-) Beckinghausen and (Bergkamen-)Oberaden, both about 20 kilometres away.
The Romans mainly supplied their troops by waterway – to achieve this, ships in fact had to be
hauled up-stream by manpower or draught-animals from the river-banks.
Shallow water at the river-ford at Olfen would have necessitated disloading the barges,
needing an intermediate storage. At max 2 Cohorts would have been garrisoned at Olfen until
the camp was disbanded about 4 years later.
This find looks promising both in an historical and an archeological context, for only in few cases the site of a roman camp has not been built over in modern times.
“This monument may have remained in the ground unhampered for most parts for over 2000
years, an absolute rarity and absolutely ideal from an archeologic point of view.
It is our primary concern, to protect this monument and to preserve for the future, not to excavate it completely as fast as we can.” Say Rind.
The research on this camp may well take decades.
Part 2
Background
Discoveries of roman camps along the Lippe.
(See top !)
Greez
Simplex
Part 1
(As to Part 2: Folks, frankly -- I don't know when I got time to do this :roll: )
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part 1:
Roman Military Camp Discovered Alongsides River Lippe.
LWL-Movie-Documentary on first excavations.
PIC1
The finds are reflecting everyday-life of roman legionaries: from pay, pottery, fibula,
ointment-phials to animals bones. The finds are dated to augustean times,
PIC2
General plan.( Rem.: of early roman camps related to the “Lippe camps”)
PIC3
Well over 100 years ago (Rem.: actually ca. 120 years ago!) this roman military helmet
From the first half of 1st century AD was recovered from river Lippe – “on level” with the
Newly discovered military camp.
PIC4
Aerial photograph of Olfen
PIC5
Final proof to the archeologists that they would be dealing with a find of a roman military camp : A trench nearly 5 metres deep and 2 metres wide, protecting the camp from attacks.
A constructional feature absolutely characteristical for roman military camp.
(Rem.: Ahhhhhh ….yes ?!)
PIC6
One of the first indications for the roman camp at Olfen: This fibula for roman legionaries
Dating to the first century AD, surfaced at the first prospectionary cut in 2010.
PIC7
A copper-coins charactersistical small coinage of the roman legionaries. Indicating the first
Roman military campaign in Westphalia between 11 BC and 9AD.
Fronstside: Imperator Augustus with his son-in-law Agrippa.
PIC8
(Flipside ?!) Depicted is a crocodile chained to a palmtree – an allegory of the subjection
of Egypt by Augustus. Struck in Nimes in southern France. (Rem.: That would be called
a “Nemausus as”, then, --right ?!)
PIC9
A bronce decoration of a roman legionaries’ helmet from the first century AD, which the
Researchers found in a waste-deposit dugout.
PIC 10
The hitherto “oldest-dating” find at Olfen. A late-republican silvercoin from about 90BC.
Frontside: god Apollo.
PIC11
Flipside: A Quadriga. (= Horses team-of-four)
PIC12
A fragment of typical roman table-pottery, so-called Terra Sigillata from Italy bearing the manufacturing-stamp of a potter from (todays) Tuscany. Right aside: Fragments of an
ointment-phiole for perfume oil.
PIC13:
Model of the Anreppen camp. Comparable to Olfen by its location by the river Lippe
and its wood-and-earth rampart. A similar covering with internal buildings is to be presumed.
PIC14:
A repetition of that to pic12
The pictures shown are available for download at the press-forum of the districtionary community. ( Rem.: >> LWL)
PRESS INFOS/Culture
Release from October 25th, 2011
ROMAN MILITARY CAMP DISCOVERED ON RIVER LIPPE
LWL-Movie documenting the first excavations.
OLFEN/MÜNSTER(LWL)
Archeologists of the districtionary community Westphalen-Lippe (LWL) discovered a
roman military camp over-2000-year-old and about 5 hectares large near Olfen/ Coesfeld county in the Münsterland. (Rem.: that is the area around Münster/Westfalen)
From 11 to 7 AD this camp enabled the romans to control a Lippe ford, --- one of the
most essential logistic “landmarks” for the roman conquerors.
The archeologist found pottery, coins and fibulae, identifying traces of a trench with a wooden rampart around the camp, which would grant protection for about 1000 legionaries on an area about 7 football-grounds large . (Rem.: for Americans : this is soccer-playground size).
Last time a steady “wintertight” roman encampment like this was found was at Anreppen
On the river Lippe in 1968.
“It’s a sensational find for the research on Romans in Westphalia” says Dr. Wolfgang Kirsch,
director of the LWL. “Archeologists have been searching for this roman camp for 100 years, -- it’s the ( a ) missing link in the chain of the roman military camps along the Lippe.”
Prof. Dr. Michael Rind, LWLs chief archeologist: “Olfen was of prime strategical significance
for Drusus’ campaigns in Germania.”
A paper-chase for decades
The chase for a camp at Olfen resembles a paper-chase going on for decades, initially starting
By the end of the 19th century (AD) a roman military helmet of bronce had been found in river Lippe near Olfen, which today is on exhibition at the LWL Roman Museum at Haltern.
This got the attention of the scholars of antiquity , because they were already looking for roman camps along river Lippe then.
In 2001 voluntary members of LWL-Archeology on a searching-spree discovered roman pottery fragments on a field near Olfen and “triggered” a “bundle of actions” by thearcheologists of the LWL. Aerial prospctions by member of the Ruhr University at Bochum
(Rem.: Dr. Baoquan Song, that is) took photographs of the landscapes from some 100 metres over ground to gain evidence for subterraneous building-structures through (visible) changes on the ground.
A prospectional trench of 13 metres length and 2,5 metres width was laid-out, then.
The researchers (Anm.: also) utilized so-called “magnetic prospection” looking for disturbances of the magnetic field, which could be pointing at manipulations to the ground.
Explorators (Rem.: with electronic sensing devices) under commission of the archeologists of the LWL, and working in conjunction with them, were scanning the ground for metal finds.
What started as a vague suspicion, changed to certainty in the course of only a few weeks:
It was a roman military camp, indeed. The archeologists could prove the course of a Fossa
Fastigata encircling the camp as well as the foundations traces of a wood-and-earth rampart.
Single finds of pottery, over 100 coins and a number of fibula allow dating the camp very precisely into Augustean times. The camp extends to about 230 metres versus 250 metres.
Compared to the other ronam camps along river Lippe it’s a small camp with steady structures.
Supply camp and base camp
The size of the camp, the structure of the earth-and-wood rampart and the location near the river Lippe led the researchers to believe that it was intended as a supply camp, an installment
for holding supplies that also controlled a pass over the river Lippe.
The camp at Olfen could have served as “intermediate” between the military camps of
(Lünen-) Beckinghausen and (Bergkamen-)Oberaden, both about 20 kilometres away.
The Romans mainly supplied their troops by waterway – to achieve this, ships in fact had to be
hauled up-stream by manpower or draught-animals from the river-banks.
Shallow water at the river-ford at Olfen would have necessitated disloading the barges,
needing an intermediate storage. At max 2 Cohorts would have been garrisoned at Olfen until
the camp was disbanded about 4 years later.
This find looks promising both in an historical and an archeological context, for only in few cases the site of a roman camp has not been built over in modern times.
“This monument may have remained in the ground unhampered for most parts for over 2000
years, an absolute rarity and absolutely ideal from an archeologic point of view.
It is our primary concern, to protect this monument and to preserve for the future, not to excavate it completely as fast as we can.” Say Rind.
The research on this camp may well take decades.
Part 2
Background
Discoveries of roman camps along the Lippe.
(See top !)
Greez
Simplex
Siggi K.
